The Evening Star
by Olivia U. L
Summary: Pharaoh captures a new slave girl and finds herself falling for her prisoner. ShizNat and others, set over three thousand years into the past.
1. New Conquests

This fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE. I did some research on New Kingdom ancient Egypt while I worked on this for the last two months, but I'm definitely no Egyptologist and there are probably some readers who know more about this period than I do, so please forgive mistakes. (In other words, "Research is hard so let's get on with the yuri.")

And since I won't have anything else up before the 15th: Happy Birthday, Natsuki!

**Warning:** This fic contains some ugly things, such as violence, slavery, and Tomoe.

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The sounds of battle could be heard all throughout the capital city of Fuuka. The clash of swords and spears meeting shields, of metal-tipped arrows piercing armor and doors being smashed in, the pounding of hooves and running feet, the thunder of chariots, the screams of the dying, and the yells of those who were still alive, for now.

Even from within the royal palace, Shizuru could hear all the terrible noises clearly.

The invading Egyptians had breached the gates some time ago, and by the sound of it they were quickly spreading through the city towards the palace. Fuuka's soldiers had tried to hold them off outside the city's walls, but they were no match for the much larger army led by the Pharaoh of Egypt. Fuuka's remaining units were now either fleeing the field or in retreat to cover their king, the Obsidian Lord.

Shizuru had ordered the evacuation of the palace earlier, when it became clear that King Reito of Fuuka was losing the battle outside the city. As far as she knew, the huge building was now empty except for her.

Even with the sounds of death and terror coming in from the wide balcony that overlooked the rest of the city, Shizuru sat calmly on a tasseled cushion in her royal chambers. An outsider never would have guessed that this beautiful young woman – not far into her twenties from the look of her – was listening to her home come under attack. She seemed perfectly dignified and unruffled, casually sipping a drink.

Her royal robes, dyed a deep purple and wrapped with a wide sash, had elaborate red and gold embroidery flowing across the shoulders and chest and down the wide sleeves. Nubian amethysts were set into her necklace of gold links, and the braided coronet encircling her sandy-haired head was of rare silver imported from the Aegean. She looked every inch the Queen of Fuuka.

She had had her servants dress her in her very best before she dismissed them hours ago and told them to look to their own safety rather than hers. She sighed deeply, making the surface of the drink she held ripple. Hopefully, all of her servants and ladies-in-waiting would escape safely, or at least find somewhere to hide until the fighting and looting died down.

She prayed they did not meet the same fate Shizuru herself feared awaited her.

The drink rippled again in its golden cup, and Shizuru realized her hands were trembling. _Stay calm_, she willed herself.

Suddenly, the door to the room flew open. It smacked against the wall loudly, almost making Shizuru spill her drink all over her lap from shock. Her heart thudded against her ribs – were the Egyptians here in the palace already?

The burst of fright faded somewhat when her husband came barging in from the anteroom, not even bothering to shut the door behind him. Despite his golden crown and the black-painted bronze armor he wore, Reito certainly did not look imposing right now. His eyes were wide with fear and sweat streamed down his face as he darted about the room. He was unarmed, but was carrying empty leather sacks, of all things.

"Pharaoh's men will reach the palace in a few minutes." The words came out with slight pants, as if he had been running through the corridors to get here. "So we need to grab whatever valuables we can before we escape!"

He suited words to action, going around the room quickly and snatching up anything of worth he could find. Trinkets and small ornaments were torn from their places, and polished copper hand-mirrors were knocked aside so he could upend jewelry boxes onto the ivory table. There were certainly enough valuables in their chambers to fill those sacks; Reito loved ostentatious shows of wealth.

When Reito had taken his father's throne a year ago and became the Obsidian Lord, King of the nation of Fuuka, her marriage to him had been a purely political decision. One her high-ranking noble parents had not bothered to consult her about before arranging. From the start, there was never any love between Shizuru and her husband, or even friendly affection. But then, love always came second to power gains where royal marriages were concerned.

Fortunately for her, however, Reito usually ignored his queen and busied himself with his many slave girls. It was disgraceful for a nobleman to take advantage of servants in such a way, but Reito had never cared much about upholding his dignity.

Another man poked his head into the room, not entering fully like Reito did. Nagi, still wearing the decorated tunic that marked him as a king's advisor, swept his eyes over the place, flashed Shizuru a rude grin, and then ducked back into the anteroom to wait for the dark-haired man to finish.

Inwardly, Shizuru hissed with anger. It was that pale little worm of a man who had prodded Reito into setting this entire disaster in motion!

A newly-crowned and inexperienced Pharaoh was a great opportunity for Fuuka, Nagi had insisted over a month ago. This young Pharaoh, a mere _woman_, would be too overwhelmed trying to manage the large empire she had just inherited to notice the actions of one much smaller nation along her southwestern border.

The kings of Fuuka had always wanted control of those two gold mines near one of the Nile's tributaries, and Nagi had convinced the current king that now was the perfect time to seize them from Egypt and expand Fuuka's wealth. Not that Reito had needed much convincing, despite the protests of his other more sensible advisors. Greed always won out over logic for Reito.

_What fools those two are_, Shizuru thought, not for the first time. Nagi and Reito seemed to forget that Fuuka had been conquered by Egypt once before in the past. Well, now they surely remembered why. Four weeks ago when the first group of soldiers carrying the Obsidian Lord's standard had set foot on Egyptian land, Pharaoh's army immediately fell on them like a ton of mud-bricks.

And the woman had not stopped at just repelling the incursion. She kept marching her men straight on, moving westward into Fuuka's territory, decimating every force sent against her. Settlement after settlement was conquered by the army led by the "new and inexperienced" Pharaoh, and she had pushed effortlessly on to the capital city of Fuuka.

And now, only a month since Reito and Nagi's idiotic plan was hatched, she was at their very gates.

If Reito had taken the advice offered to him, he would have pulled all his remaining forces back behind the city's walls and forced Pharaoh to begin a siege. With enough supplies, a properly fortified city could withstand siege for months. It might have bought them some time to come up with a plan, or even beg for negotiations.

But no. Earlier today the king had rallied what was left of Fuuka's army and ridden out in his chariot to fight the Egyptians head-on in front of the city gates. If a female ruler could lead her soldiers to victory, Reito had insisted, then no doubt he himself could do it even better and force her to retreat. He simply ignored it when Shizuru pointed out that the rulers of Egypt routinely trained their heirs from childhood to be warriors, whereas Reito had never held any but a ceremonial weapon.

And the fact that the King of Fuuka, the feared Obsidian Lord, was right now dashing about his quarters stuffing sacks with gold and jewels and looking over his shoulder in a panic every four seconds meant that Pharaoh had won yet another battle today. There would be no negotiations, no terms of surrender. Fuuka was lost.

Scooping up the last bits of valuables to shove them into the leather sacks, Reito spared a glance at his wife. She still sat on the tasseled cushions, completely unfazed, sipping her drink just like she had been when he first burst into the room a few minutes ago.

"What are you waiting for, woman? Egyptian soldiers have almost reached the palace! We need to leave _now_!" The clamor of fighting – not as distant as before – emphasized his urgency.

"Leave if you wish," Shizuru said. "I have decided to stay." She brought her cup up for another sip. Its contents had long since grown cold, but she drank it anyway. It could be her last.

An armful of lapis lazuli trinkets clattered to the tiled floor as Reito whirled to face her. "What?!"

"I will not die a coward, struck down from behind as I run. And I won't spend the rest of my life in hiding." She carefully placed her now empty cup onto the carved wooden tray beside her and closed her eyes calmly. "Whether I die here or as Pharaoh's prisoner I will be remembered as a queen."

"A _queen_?" Reito repeated incredulously. "Do you really think that monster will let you keep any dignity? You've heard what she does after each battle, in every town and garrison her army has conquered."

Eyes still closed, Shizuru repressed a shiver of fear. She _had _heard, and she knew what likely awaited her if she stayed. It did not change her decision.

"She lets her soldiers sack the place and take whatever captives they wish!" Reito dropped one of the bags to gesture with a hand as he yelled. "Most of the loot and prisoners end up as her property, and she allows her soldiers to divide the rest among themselves. Is that how you envision your _queenly_ end? As the laborer of some Egyptian? As a... a _slave_."

He slathered the last word with scorn. As if he himself did not own dozens of slaves in the palace to attend his pleasures, and hundreds more consigned to work in the fields and mines! Taking captives was just the way of things, Shizuru knew. If you lost a war to invaders, you were either killed by them or enslaved. The kings of Fuuka did the same to their own enemies.

"If you have any sense," the dark-haired man went on, "You will come with me when I lead Nagi and the rest of my entourage in retreat and be happy for the chance!"

She opened her eyes again, fixing them on his. He gave a small start at the intensity in her blood-red stare.

"And then what, Reito-san? Do you think Pharaoh will just let you flee into the desert? And if she does, how will you escape your own nobles? No doubt they are... most upset with you for bringing ruin to us all through your petty greed."

Reito snarled at his wife's scathing tone. "How dare you speak to me in such a way, woman? You forget your place!" He clenched his fists menacingly.

"Ara, are you going to beat me again?" She gave a withering laugh. "Won't that slow down your grand escape, O great Obsidian Lord? Pharaoh's men have already taken the city, and you know the palace will be hers soon also. You should run now if you want to squeeze through some unprotected side gate before her soldiers find you. I am sorry I will miss such an amusing sight."

Before Reito could splutter a response to the mockery, Nagi poked his head in again from the anteroom. "They're in the palace now," he said in his annoyingly carefree, singsong voice.

The fury melted from Reito's face and was replaced with terror. Shizuru's life might be spared once she was captured, but he surely would be executed painfully for daring to try to steal from Egypt.

He dashed towards Nagi at the doorway, dragging what he had scavenged from their chambers. The place already looked like soldiers had sacked it, with the small wooden and ivory tables overturned, cushions tossed about haphazardly, and whatever ornaments Reito had not been able to carry strewn across the rugs and floor tiles.

"Not coming with us, Shizuru-chan?" Nagi made it sound as if he and Reito were about to embark on a leisurely stroll rather than run for their lives.

She ignored him coldly. Worms did not deserve the attention of queens.

"She's staying. Now let's go!" Reito shoved two of the heavy bags full of valuables into his minion's arms and the skinny young man staggered under their weight. Before Nagi could voice a protest though, Reito lumbered from the room, running as best he could while weighed down so.

Nagi glanced at Shizuru one last time and made a disappointed sound in his throat. "What a pity." With that, he turned and followed after the king.

When the sound of their running footsteps faded, Shizuru let out a deep breath. Now she was truly alone here. There was no turning back. No way to prevent her death or torture or rape or whatever other horrible things might await her once she was found by Pharaoh's men. She started trembling again.

_No! I will not be afraid._

Well, that was a ridiculous thing to aim for, Shizuru realized. Already she was not just afraid, but terrified.

_Then I will not give in to fear._ She concentrated on that. Just that and nothing else. _Just don't give in. _Deep breaths, slowly in and out, not listening to the sounds of yells and crashes and pounding that were coming closer by the minute. The palace was large, but it would not take the Egyptians long to seize control of it, empty of people as it was.

She lost track of how long she sat there in the ransacked chamber, willing herself to maintain her composure and not break down into screaming and tears. When the rays of late afternoon sunlight streaming in from the balcony had shifted to slant across the room's far corner, the inevitable finally happened.

Footsteps in the corridor outside her chambers. Several pairs of them, stomping in soldiers' heavy leather sandals. They were accompanied by the sounds of men calling to each other and metal armor rattling as they moved.

She heard the door to her anteroom open, and one of the soldiers walking through it to search what lay beyond.

He shouldered the next door open roughly like Reito had earlier, but then stopped to stare in awe at the royal sitting room. The soldier let out a whistle as he looked around. Fuuka did not possess a fraction of the wealth Egyptian royalty did, of course, but this place was still probably much richer than anything a simple soldier had ever seen, even ransacked as Reito had left it. The dark-haired man in armor standing in Shizuru's doorway carried a spear in one hand and a wooden shield on his other arm, and a scar was visible on his cheek.

The fool jumped when he noticed the woman sitting on her cushion in the room's center. He had probably expected these chambers to be empty like the rest of the palace. He lowered his spear defensively as if he expected her to pull daggers from her wide sleeves and rush him.

"Who the hell are you?" he asked rudely.

Most people of Fuuka spoke the Egyptian language – a remnant of their time as one of the empire's provinces over a century ago – though they had developed their own slightly different dialect and accent since then. Shizuru had no trouble understanding the man's speech despite the differences.

"I am Fujino Shizuru, Queen of Fuuka." She was proud that the words came out so calmly. Her heart had leapt into her throat as soon as the man entered, but she was determined not to show fear, even if – no, especially if – she was about to die.

He blinked in surprise, but after one look at her elaborate clothes and silver crown he believed her. He grinned, thanking every god he could think of for such a turn of good luck.

"Well, well! Pharaoh will definitely reward me personally for bringing you to her!"

The possibly of meeting Pharaoh face-to-face seemed to excite him enough that he was willing to ignore all the loot in these rooms. He shifted his spear to the other arm that his shield was strapped to so he could gesture for her to follow him.

"You will come with me, now." By his tone, it was either come willingly or be dragged there. Shizuru was not about to let such an uncouth man lay a hand on her, so got to her feet in one fluid motion.

There were other armed Egyptians still in the corridor outside when they reached it, and the spearman paused to ask one of them where to find their commanding officers.

"Last I heard, Captain Takeda, the generals were having a meeting in this place's throne room," the other soldier said. He waved a hand in the general direction of the palace's center.

Takeda gave the man a nod of thanks and turned to take Shizuru by the arm and lead her away. She brushed him off like a buzzing fly.

"I know where the throne room is." Her condescending tone made him feel like a child who had butted into grownup talk.

Before he could do more than mutter darkly, she swept gracefully down the corridor. The dark-haired man stomped after her as she made her way out of the royal wing towards the throne room. Other Egyptian warriors they passed on their way were not sure who was leading whom.

As they walked, Shizuru's thoughts fell on what lay in store for her once they reached the throne room. Would she be killed here, or taken back to Egypt for a public execution? Or perhaps she was to be taken prisoner and kept as a slave to one of Pharaoh's lieutenants, or even to Pharaoh herself.

Shizuru pushed the grim thoughts away. _Don't focus on the fear or it will overwhelm you_, she told herself._ Think of something else. _She found herself wondering about the person she was being taken to meet.

What would she look like, this young woman who ruled a golden empire and was traditionally worshiped as a living god by her people? Reito had called the new Pharaoh a monster, and maybe she was one in a sense. Surely, though, the woman could not have the head of a beast like some of the other gods Egyptians made offerings to. Would she have the flawless pale skin of an aristocrat, or would she be scarred by battle? Did she snarl and roar as she cut down all who dared stand against her, or was she cold as she sent arrow after arrow into enemy lines from her chariot?

Her speculation came to an end when they came to the tall double doors carved with the royal emblem of Fuuka. The doors had been swung wide open, and Takeda exchanged a few words with one of the other captains before he and his "prisoner" were waved into the large chamber.

Shizuru was quite familiar with the place. A long red runner led up to the wide dais that held the Obsidian Throne, and the stone walls were painted an imposing black and hung with red cloths. The mirror-backed oil lamps around the room had been lit to illuminate it in the twilight.

A knot of Egyptian men and women, high-ranking officers and nobles from the looks of them, stood talking in the center of the room. Other Egyptian soldiers were scattered across the room, some of them rigidly at attention with their spears and shields upright, others chatting amongst themselves about what to loot from the rich palace. There was no one left for them to fight here, so they had been given permission to take their ease now that the battle was won.

Takeda brought Shizuru almost to the room's center and then prodded the butt of his spear into the back of her knee sharply, making her leg fold and shin thud to the stone floor. Gripping her shoulder from behind, the soldier pushed her the rest of the way down until she was kneeling before the group of men and women who stood talking in front of the throne's raised dais.

It seemed they were going to have to wait to be noticed by his commanding officers. Shizuru gritted her teeth and ignored the rude spearman, instead taking the opportunity to study those officers as they talked.

Most charioteers and high-ranking warriors were noble-born, and it showed in their outfits. The charioteers' main weapon was a bow, but here they carried war maces and battle-axes and Egyptian sickle-swords. Like ordinary soldiers, bronze scale-mail or leather jerkins sewn with bronze disks protected their torsos, with helmets covering the tops of their heads. But unlike the commoners, their leather sandals and belts were decorated and worked with gold, and they wore wide golden bands around their wrists, biceps, and ankles. Ear studs, rings, and intricately carved and begemmed amulets were also worn, and the men and women alike had black eyeliner and eyeshadow and darkened eyebrows. Egyptians certainly did love their makeup and their gold – it seemed they did not forgo them even for a battle.

Shizuru scanned her searching red eyes over the group of nobles, lieutenants, generals, and... _there_. That must be _her_.

Pharaoh's scale-mail tunic, gold-plated and set with hard semiprecious stones that would give better protection from arrows, glinted in the lamplight, as did the bronze sickle-sword she held. Like the other commanders, she wore golden armbands, bracers, and anklets, and a linen garment that wrapped around her waist and came to her knees.

Atop her head sat the War Crown, made of stiff blue leather that covered her hair and nape and extended up slightly, like a helmet. A band of gold circled the base of the crown, supporting two small golden animal figures just above her forehead. Shizuru knew what they were: a vulture and a rearing cobra side by side, symbol of Upper and Lower Egypt united under one divine ruler.

Shizuru's gaze then lowered to the face framed beneath them. What she saw surprised her.

Nagi had been right – the new Pharaoh _was_ young, perhaps even a bit younger than Shizuru herself. But, like the older brunette, she had a regal bearing that would have identified her even without the unique crown. What surprised Shizuru more, however, was how gorgeous the woman was. The lineaments of her face looked like fine alabaster carved by a master sculptor. Even her serious expression did not lessen her beauty. Like all high-ranking Egyptians, her eyes were shadowed and lined with black makeup, and the same powder painted her eyebrows.

Pharaoh was listening to a tall blonde woman wearing a general's elaborate outfit. This other woman's eyeshadow was purple, and her blackened eyebrows were drawn down in a fierce scowl. Shizuru could not quite tell from across the room, but she thought a vein was pulsing in the blonde's forehead. The woman held a large mace in one hand and waved her free arm animatedly as she yelled.

Shizuru had been too distracted earlier to focus on what the Egyptians were talking about, but now she had nothing to do but listen and observe as she and Takeda waited.

"- should chase that dog of a king into the sands, Natsuki! Let his people see his head dangle from your battle standard and then we'll see how long they continue to resist our soldiers. If we push on with this campaign, we could take all the rest of Fuuka in less than another month! We c-"

"No, Haruka."

The voice that cut smoothly into the blonde's tirade was like none Shizuru had ever heard before. Deep for a woman and a little husky, but still unmistakably feminine.

"You're one of the greatest generals to ever serve Egypt..."

The tall blonde puffed up at the compliment like a hawk preening itself, but then deflated again as Natsuki continued.

"...but you forget that everything we conquer we must also govern. If we take any more of their land we won't be able to hold on to it and defend it; we'll become like the lions whose kill is stolen by hyenas. Besides, Egypt has many enemies and many borders to defend. Focusing all our efforts in one place is just an invitation for other foreigners to invade the unprotected areas. And as for their king..."

Pharaoh shook her head dismissively. Two blue cloth tails that Shizuru had not noticed before, falling from the base of the crown at the nape of her neck to midway down her back, fluttered briefly from the movement.

"Even if he manages to escape our patrols, his own people will probably kill him. Fuuka has been shattered, Haruka. The parts that don't belong to me now will dissolve into small fragments of whatever territory local nobles can hold on to. It'll probably be generations before they can unite behind one king again, and we'll be ready to take more of their land for our empire long before then."

Haruka still did not look completely convinced. The general opened her mouth again stubbornly to continue her argument, but Natsuki cut her off before she could begin. As Pharaoh, she could have just ordered Haruka to drop the subject, but the blonde was a loyal friend of hers and Natsuki wanted her to understand the reasons for her decision. Natsuki had meant what she said; Haruka was a magnificent general, but she could be a little overzealous sometimes.

"This past month has already proved a success," Natsuki said. "Land that hasn't been part of Egypt since my great-grandfather's reign is now under our rule again. Many slaves have been taken in battle and this city has even more to offer us in slaves and loot." She gestured around the throne room with her sickle-sword. "A great success, with no need to bite off more than we can chew and only lose more men."

That last was probably what made Haruka finally give a reluctant nod. Egypt was hardly lacking in soldiers, but Haruka still hated losing her men – who all admired their general – needlessly on the battlefield.

It was then that the two of them became aware of Takeda waiting there behind a kneeling Shizuru. Haruka and Natsuki turned to look at the man expectantly.

"Report, Captain!" the blonde barked.

Takeda cleared his throat nervously. Pharaoh was giving him the honor of speaking directly to her! If he was going to impress her, this was his only chance.

"I bring the Queen of Fuuka to you as a prisoner, Daughter of Re, Natsuki _Netjeretkhau_, Divine of Appearance," he intoned formally. "May you have long life, prosperity, and health, Your Majesty the fierce lion and mighty bull, whose reign is as the sun..."

The man went right on reciting several of Natsuki's many royal titles, most of which were intended for ceremonial use, not for a soldier's report.

Natsuki's attention had already left Takeda and his grandiose posing to focus on the woman he stood behind.

Her gaze moved up and down slowly, taking in the richly decorated robe and silver coronet atop light brown hair, but she seemed more interested in Shizuru's defiantly upright back and the look of utmost calm and confidence on her beautiful face. Natsuki was completely intrigued; the queen certainly did not look like a cowed prisoner.

Then those black-shadowed eyes fell on the hand clutching the queen's shoulder tightly to keep her on her knees.

"Unhand her."

Takeda's hand sprang back from Shizuru's shoulder as if the cloth of her embroidered robe had suddenly burned him. He shuffled a few feet backwards, bobbing up in down in a bow with each step and mumbling apologies to the Pharaoh.

Shizuru rose to her feet and smoothed her clothes unhurriedly as Natsuki strode towards her, leather sandals making soft noises as she moved across the stone floor.

Haruka and the other officers, along with all the soldiers surrounding the throne room, stopped their talking to watch the strange foreigner who had drawn their ruler's attention. Shizuru ignored their stares and focused instead on the woman who now stood only a few feet in front of her.

This close, Shizuru could see she was of a height with Natsuki, if not slightly taller. The Egyptian was even more beautiful than she had seemed from across the room, and her eyes were a vibrant green, like the rare emeralds mined near the Red Sea.

"_Netjeretkhau – Divine of Appearance"... The name suits her._

Natsuki was giving her a similar silent inspection, eying Shizuru up and down like the gorgeous brunette was some exotic bird in a menagerie. It was the blood-red eyes that she finally fixated on. She stared as if she had never seen irises such a color.

The Queen of Fuuka said nothing through it all, standing with her back straight and her hands folded patiently at her waist. Anxiety grew in Shizuru with every moment the Egyptian woman wordlessly held her gaze, but she refused to give in to it and look away.

_At least she has not killed me yet._ This young Pharaoh did not seem like the vicious conqueror Shizuru had feared she would be. Still, that did not ensure that Shizuru would escape death or imprisonment.

Finally Natsuki spoke, still staring into Shizuru's eyes.

"My soldiers found no one left in this palace but a few servants and unarmed guards, all of them cowering in corners trying to hide. Yet you stayed." Her tone became admiring. "You've more courage than your husband."

"I have no husband," Shizuru said simply. No matter the punishment, she was not going to grovel before this supposed god and neither was she going to shower the woman with titles like the captain had.

Natsuki's black-painted eyebrows drew down slightly beneath the golden cobra and vulture adorning the front of her crown. It could have been in anger at Shizuru's disrespect or in confusion over what she said. The queen decided to act as if it had been the latter and elaborate.

Before, Shizuru had not had the power to object to her parents' decision, but now there were no consequences for disobeying them that could be worse than whatever she would face at the hands of the woman in front of her.

"I was married to the King of Fuuka. You said yourself that the nation of Fuuka is shattered, so there no longer exists any such king, only a wretch hiding in the desert with his tail between his legs." Shizuru shook her head. "I refuse to be the wife of such a man. Our marriage is now void."

Natsuki smirked. It was not the kind of expression Shizuru expected to see from a Pharaoh, who were depicted as solemn in every piece of Egyptian art she had ever seen, but there was no other word for the smile that crooked half of Natsuki's mouth upwards.

The younger woman then nodded to herself as if she had reached some decision upon hearing Shizuru speak. Shizuru knew that her fate, whether death or enslavement, had just been sealed.

Turning back to face the blonde general still by the dais, Natsuki raised her voice slightly to call out to her. "Haruka, you're in charge of solidifying the city's takeover. I'll leave two companies of chariots and most of the infantry here under your control. Tomorrow morning I begin my return to Egypt's capital."

Those fierce green eyes of hers met the brunette's again, and despite her best efforts at composure Shizuru could not stop a shiver at the look in them.

"Along with my newest slave."

* * *

AN: I admit the Nagi- and Reito-bashing was pretty shameless, but I didn't want to make their characters into something more rounded out since they only appear for one scene. Btw, those are real Pharaonic titles and praises that poor bastard Takeda is rambling on about – I could not make stuff like that up.

And don't worry, this is a romance fic so Shizuru _definitely_ will not be abused or violated by Natsuki – their relationship will develop slowly, with mutual attraction. (Sorry to all those who wanted BDSM-style Shizuru punishment. Maybe I will do a sidestory with that. XD)


	2. The Killing Fields

Thank you all so much for the positive responses to the first chapter! I was flattered! Let me know if I missed you and didn't send a reply. And to anonymous reviewers, please register so I can send you replies too.

My apologies for taking so long to update, and my thanks for being so patient with me. But, good news: what I'd originally intended to be Chapter 2 turned out to be massive enough to rival Mai's breasts, so I split it into three parts, which means readers will get two more chapters not too long after this one.

This fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

* * *

Night had fully set in by the time Shizuru walked out of Fuuka's royal palace and into the courtyard that opened out onto the capital city. She knew it was the last time she would see either place.

After leaving orders with that loud blonde general, Natsuki had made her way out of the throne room, motioning her crowned head for Shizuru to follow. There was little choice for her but to obey.

Their walk through the near-empty palace corridors had been fast, interrupted only by enthusiastic bows and salutes of Egyptian soldiers the two women passed on their way. It was a silent trip, the soft padding of Shizuru's shoes and the heavier tread of Natsuki's leather sandals taking the place of conversation.

Not that the brunette knew what conversation they could have had, anyways. She was still a bit stunned by Natsuki's sudden pronouncement. Execution at the conqueror's hands, Shizuru had expected. Enslavement to one of the invading soldiers, she had also expected, and mentally prepared herself for. But looking Pharaoh in the eye and hearing her announce she was taking Shizuru with her back to Egypt as her own slave, Shizuru had definitely _not_ expected.

And she was unsure whether she should be relieved or not.

The decision obviously surprised the other Egyptians, too. As Pharaoh, Natsuki no doubt owned many hundreds of slaves, but most of those would be prisoners captured from conquered territories or laborers sent in groups as tribute from her vassals, not individuals personally selected by her. Was this the first time Natsuki had claimed a slave out of some personal interest? _Why choose me? _Shizuru wondered. And more importantly, what did Natsuki plan to do with the former queen?

Inwardly, Shizuru sighed. Too many questions. For the moment, she decided the best policy was to be silent and observe for a while before daring to test the waters with her new "master".

Now, she and Natsuki stood at the height of the sandstone steps that looked out across the palace's main courtyard. Two huge double doors, the palace's formal entryway, were behind them. The age-darkened wood was now battered and unhinged, missing jagged, splintered chunks from where the soldiers had rammed it down.

An almost full moon shone down on Fuuka's capital city. Milling in the large open courtyard before them were several dozen Egyptian officers, along with more soldiers. Many of those officers were noble-born, evidenced by their black eyeliner and eyeshadow, along with their golden armbands, wristbands, and jeweled amulets that glinted in the blaze of the soldiers' torches. The high-ranking men and women wore bronze armor on their torso and a white _shenti_ garment that wrapped around their waist and thighs.

Shizuru took a breath at the sight of the nonchalant invaders, and caught a whiff of acrid smoke blown from somewhere in the city. The lower city, probably. Not too much smoke, so it was not a large fire – at least, not yet – but it was likely enough to threaten the tight-packed wooden dwellings and tiny mud-brick houses in the capital's poorer districts. She wondered which side had started it, and if it had been accidental.

Still without speaking, Natsuki descended the steps to the crowded courtyard, her gold-plated scale-mail tunic clinking. The bronze sickle-sword she'd carried earlier was now fastened to one side of her worked leather belt. With a swish of her long embroidered robe, Shizuru followed her down.

Natsuki headed to one chariot in particular. Around it stood a dozen spearmen in bronze-studded leather jerkins, all stiffly at attention. Sickle-swords similar to Natsuki's hung at their sides, and they held tapered rectangular shields of taut-stretched cowhide opposite their spears, though a few carried torches instead.

Shizuru assumed these men were a few of Natsuki's personal guards, but they were not purely ceremonial. The slashes marring their armor and the bloodstains on their formerly white _shenti_s proved these soldiers had seen hard fighting today.

Atop Pharaoh's standard, a slender wooden pole twice as tall as the guard carrying it, perched a life-sized falcon made of gold. The bird wore a carved replica of the Double Crown, painted red and white to match its real-life counterpart. The falcon itself represented the god whose divine spirit inhabited the mortal body of the Pharaoh, and even carved of cold metal it almost looked alive, animated by an unyielding strength of will.

Most of the Egyptian symbols were familiar to Shizuru, as they were to many of Fuuka's people. Even after a century of independence, the kings of Fuuka had not managed to completely eradicate every monument, temple, carving, and other mark the previous Egyptian conquerors had left all over this small country.

And now they never would, she realized with another inward sigh. Fuuka was once again just another of the Egyptian empire's many conquered states, and Shizuru did not think this Pharaoh would let it slip out of her grasp like her great-grandfather had.

A path immediately opened up among those milling in the courtyard as their ruler strode by with Shizuru in tow. Even the nobles in their decorated armor and body jewelry bowed deeply as the two women made their way past them to Natsuki's chariot.

The two horses who pulled it were matching bay geldings with a look of endurance about them. They stood waiting for their mistress's return, occasionally stomping a hoof or tossing their bridled heads. Thick leather straps hitched them to either side of the chariot's front draught pole, and they had padded yoke saddles resting on their powerful shoulders. Their manes had been shaved, and their arched necks wrapped in blue headdresses with a row of upright feathers marching down the napes of their necks, making it look like the horses had manes of some exotic plumage. Here and there the striped blue and yellow blankets on their backs had splatters of blood from the fighting, and their hooves and ankles were covered in dirt and muddied blood from the battlefield.

Behind the horses was the wooden chariot box, where the passengers rode. It rested on its axle, with two six-spoked wheels rimmed with bronze to make them more durable. Although, "durable" was not really the word to describe an Egyptian chariot. They were much lighter and more fragile than those Fuuka's warriors used, but the Egyptians sacrificed durability for agility, so their chariots could practically fly across the battlefield and bite into enemy lines with the speed of a cobra's strike.

A short, helmetless figure stood in the chariot box holding the reins. A boy, Shizuru first thought, but she realized it was actually a teenage girl with very short black hair.

As Natsuki approached, the girl hopped down from the open back of the vehicle. She started to bend in a bow once she was back on the ground, but Natsuki caught her shoulders in both hands and held her up.

"Forget about bowing for now, Mikoto."

Natsuki's slightly rough voice had changed from what Shizuru had heard in the throne room. Now it was... plainer, more comfortable and familiar. Still full of confidence and a little arrogance, but not trying to impress anything upon the person she was addressing.

"I'd be dead ten times over in today's battle if not for your skills as a driver," Natsuki said. She gave Mikoto's shoulders a grateful squeeze, and the girl's face broke out in a pleased grin.

One of the commanders, a blond nobleman with a scar between his makeup-darkened eyebrows, came to meet Natsuki at her chariot.

He cast Shizuru a curious glance as he approached. From her braided silver coronet and wide-sleeved purple robe, he could see she was one of the conquered nobles, but why she was at his ruler's side he obviously had no idea. He knew better than to question Pharaoh, though.

"I'm going back to camp," Natsuki told the man. That commanding, slightly arrogant tone was back, Shizuru noted. "And tomorrow I intend to depart for Egypt's capital. A new ruler should not neglect her throne, even for a war. Haruka already has instructions for solidifying our control here. Orders for the withdrawal will be sent to you later tonight."

Natsuki sniffed the smoke-tinged air and grimaced. "And put that fire in the city out, Sergei. It can't be allowed to spread and do more damage."

The commander bowed and promised to see to it immediately. Natsuki's green eyes then fell on the dark-haired girl again.

"You're coming with me tomorrow, Mikoto," she said reassuringly. "I know there's someone waiting for you back home."

Mikoto's grin widened and she nodded energetically.

Finished with her orders and now quite eager to get going, Natsuki climbed into the chariot, taking the driver's position on the right side of the sycamore foot-board. She turned to her captive and stretched out a hand to help her up.

Shizuru ignored the hand with such disdain one would've thought Natsuki had offered her a fistful of mud. Honestly, did Natsuki think her an invalid? Even in this long robe Shizuru was perfectly capable of getting into a silly chariot by herself, thank you very much.

She said nothing to Natsuki, but the younger woman chuckled quietly at her as if Shizuru had stuck her tongue out like a child at the offer of help. She climbed in and settled herself to Natsuki's left. There was just room for them to stand side by side, with a little space in between.

The semicircular curve of the chariot box served as a bulwark to protect its passengers' front and sides, but it left the back open. The top edge of that box came to waist height, and on the inside wall were hooked a pair of sheathed daggers and Pharaoh's ceremonial mace and battle-axe. Propped against one corner was a fully-strung recurve bow.

Natsuki unfastened the sword from her belt and hooked it alongside the other weapons before picking up the bow. The other weapons were mostly for show or for last resorts; it was the composite recurve bow a charioteer used to inflict their damage.

Twisting the bottom curve of the bow through her legs and pulling the top part against her shoulder in a motion that Shizuru could not quite follow, Natsuki unstrung the bow with a grunt of exertion. The red-eyed woman could not help but notice Natsuki's bare, toned arms flex beneath their golden armbands as she removed the waxed bowstring.

"Need to cover that soon or moisture might damage it..." Natsuki muttered to herself as she hefted the now unstrung weapon. After a moment of consideration, she simply stuck the bowstave into a big empty quiver attached to the outside of the chariot and coiled the bowstring in there with it.

Surprisingly, the other quivers nailed to the left and right sides of Natsuki's chariot were almost empty too, with only a few goose-fletched arrows left to rattle around in them. Curious, Shizuru leaned forward over the front edge and could see another of the royal falcons adorning the outside of the chariot, this one painted onto the wood with its wings spread wide and a sun disk crowning its head. She could also see that the chariot's front sported fresh dents and scrapes, and two broken-off arrow shafts stuck out of one side.

Well, it looked like Pharaohs truly _did_ lead their armies from the front. She was amazed the two horses had managed to survive the battle unscathed.

"You'd better hold on."

It took a moment for Shizuru to realize Natsuki was speaking to her. She looked at the younger woman in surprise.

It was the first time Natsuki had addressed her captive since their brief conversation in the palace throne room. Yet, strangely, her low voice was still in the relaxed tone she'd used with Mikoto, quite unlike the imperious tone of a conqueror Shizuru heard before.

_Hold on to what?_ Shizuru wanted to know once she straightened from looking at the front. She'd never actually been in one of these before. There did not seem to be any handles, and she certainly wasn't going to go feeling for one among those racked weapons lining the inside.

Natsuki gave her no time to think, for she picked up the reins from where her driver left them and flicked them across the horses' rumps.

The geldings heaved into motion with a snort, pulling the chariot and its passengers at a quick trot that made their feathered headdresses sway. Shizuru lurched and almost fell off the open back of the moving vehicle, but she managed to grab hold of the top edge of the box just in time. She barely restrained an undignified squawk as she flailed.

Natsuki, accustomed to traveling this way, effortlessly shifted her own balance to stay on her feet as they were jostled about. She did not even bother turning her head to spare the brunette a glance. From this angle, Shizuru could not quite make out the other woman's expression, but... was that a hint of a smirk on Natsuki's face as she watched Shizuru struggle to stay upright out of the corner of her eye? Shizuru was tempted to slap her if it was.

There was a scramble behind them as other nobles and officers around the courtyard started yelling for their own drivers and chariot runners to come and get them ready to follow Pharaoh back to camp. For now though, they would have to follow at a distance. Natsuki's accompanying guards with their spears and torches moved at a brisk jog to keep up with the chariot as she drove it out of the palace courtyard and into the city proper.

Shizuru's nose caught another scent as they rode, a herbal smell very different from the whiffs of smoke she'd caught earlier. She allowed herself a wry smile. The day of a great battle and Natsuki – and all the other nobles she'd seen so far – came decked out in gold jewelry, eye makeup, and perfume. These Egyptians were obsessed with their appearances.

Still, Shizuru had to admit that her new "master" had an appearance certainly worth obsessing over. Even distraught and confused as she was, Shizuru was not immune to the allure of beautiful younger women.

The chariot rumbled along the stone-paved causeway that led through the wealthy upper city, though it eventually gave way to the dirt streets of the lower city on its path to the main gates.

Although the royal palace and the military posts had been the invaders' main targets when they captured the city several hours ago, some fighting had also spilled out into the main streets. Shizuru tried to avoid looking at the few motionless forms lying on a number of streetcorners.

Armed Egyptians darted among the streets and alleys, some sent on missions by their commanders, others going from house to house and bashing doors in to look for valuables – or people – to claim as spoils of their victory. Many of the sandstone and mud-brick buildings already bore signs of looting, especially those in the upper city. She saw no civilians running about, though she supposed they were still hiding in their homes or had barricaded themselves in, hoping the invaders would pass them by.

Not all the damage was caused by the soldiers. Some of Fuuka's more... unscrupulous people had seized the opportunity of the invasion to do some looting of their own.

Natsuki did not slow their pace once they passed through the city's huge main gate that now had Egyptian archers sitting sentinel atop it. She had said nothing during the ride, her face set with grim stoicism as she surveyed the aftermath of her conquest.

Really, if she went to all the trouble of prettying herself up with makeup and jewelry, she could at least smile. Even scowling she was beautiful, so Shizuru could not imagine how breathtaking a true smile would look on her face. She found herself wondering what Natsuki's hair looked like, since the blue War Crown covered her scalp completely, concealing it from view. It did leave her cute ears exposed, though.

Her amusing thoughts were abruptly sobered when she saw what awaited them just outside the capital.

A huge open expanse of flat ground surrounded the city's walls. The city had been chosen for this spot centuries earlier not just for the nearby river distributary, but also because the open dirt plain to the east and south would prevent any surprise attacks. Every year during harvest, a market was set up in this open area, and farmers from the city's outlying villages would come with carts overflowing with their produce to trade with the craftsmen from the city.

Today, it had made a perfect battlefield. The Egyptians had not needed to try launching a surprise attack; they'd advanced head on, crushing the remainders of Fuuka's army and sweeping into the city proper, seizing control in a matter of hours. Shizuru doubted this year's harvest would see any more markets, even though there was over a month left before the season's end.

The smell of smoke from the city dissipated, but it was replaced by that emanating from three large flaming bonfires set up at opposite ends of the battlefield. Shizuru sniffed the air, confused. What were those bonfires for? Whatever they were burning, it did not have quite the same scent as the purely wood-based fire in the city.

Even though the main fighting here had finished much earlier in the day, the battlefield was far from empty at the moment. Shizuru's first instinct was to bring a hand up to cover her mouth in horror at the sight, but she suppressed it, instead tightening her grip on the chariot as they rode out onto the battlefield.

Bodies, hundreds of bodies, lay strewn across the dirt like scraps of offal tossed from the back of a moving cart. Some had been felled by arrow or spear, others cut down with swords and axes, and still others trampled to death by chariots or by their fleeing comrades. Most of the fallen looked to be from Fuuka.

The dead weren't alone, since not every one of the surviving invaders had been given leave to go pillage the city. Egyptian soldiers were scattered across the battlefield, little sparks of life among the blackness of mass death like the tiny stars shining in the dark sky above. They moved among the motionless bodies, picking their way through shattered shields and chariots, dropped weapons, and arrows sticking out of the ground.

There was as much work to be done after a battle as there was before. Shizuru knew little about war, but she knew that. Every enemy killed was just another body needing to be disposed of at the end of the day, unless you wanted disease to fester among the field of the dead. This close to a city packed with travelers and refugees from the war, an outbreak could be devastating, and not just for the people of Fuuka.

The soldiers here were in the process of gathering bodies for disposal. But before hauling them away, they searched the corpses. Any quality metal found would be salvaged for reuse or be melted down, and good leather was always useful enough to be kept, too. If the men were lucky, there might even be some valuables for them to take.

Dotted across the battlefield were soldiers hitching stripped bodies to pack-mules' harnesses to be dragged off, though there were also men working in pairs to carry the corpses away by hand. The mules and donkeys were probably the same animals that pulled the army's supply carts; Shizuru doubted the noble-born charioteers would allow their finely bred horses to be used for hauling a cart any more than they would for dead bodies.

A breeze gusted across the open expanse of the dirt field, stirring Shizuru's sandy hair and bringing her another wave of the stench from the three large bonfires. It suddenly clicked in her head what the men were burning. Bile rose in her throat, but she gritted her teeth and did her best not to gag.

The Egyptians would give their own dead proper burials in accordance with their customs, but Fuuka's fallen warriors were either hauled off to the pyres, or else left to the _other _creatures who ghosted about the battlefield.

Vultures gorged themselves on the bodies the men had not yet reached. Their white-feathered forms stood out in the moonlit night, and Shizuru could see their necks coiling and uncoiling as their black-tipped yellow beaks hungrily tore strips of flesh from their feast and pecked out juicy eyeballs. A few bony stray dogs had also found their way out to the killing fields to sniff out a meal.

The wary animals fled into the darkness when anyone came near, vanishing by the time Natsuki and her little entourage of guards rumbled within five yards of them.

However, all the Egyptian soldiers straightened from their macabre tasks when they saw Pharaoh approaching. Even in rather weak light, the golden standard and the torch-carrying ring of spearmen left no doubt about who it must be riding in that lone chariot toward the army's camp.

And every single one of those soldiers smiled triumphantly when they saw Natsuki. Most lifted spears and swords and fists to the night sky and raised a cheer as her chariot trotted by.

"All glory to the Daughter of Re!" one grinning captain cried out as they passed, "_Ankh, wedja, seneb!_ Life, prosperity, and health to the Living God and Egypt!"

The way the man said "the Living God and Egypt" made it sound like he believed they were one and the same. Other soldiers took up the shout. They must have been ritual praises, for Shizuru heard them repeated several times by others during their passage. She shook her head, bemused.

Natsuki seemed to be thinking the same thing her red-eyed companion was.

"They praise me," she muttered. Shizuru was not sure if the other woman meant the words for her to hear or if Natsuki was only thinking aloud again. "They praise _me_, as if _they_ were not the ones fighting and dying every day in this war."

Well, Shizuru knew from experience that the enthusiasm of the common people could always be faked, especially if their ruler happened to have a vicious reputation. But, when she twisted her head to watch the soldiers as she and Natsuki rode by, she could see their smiles remain even after the entourage had passed them.

Shizuru shook her head again, this time with barely suppressed anger. Gods, those happy, triumphant smiles surrounded by all this... devastation. How many thousands of soldiers had been killed in this short war, on both sides? How many thousands more civilians forced from their homes by the destruction or taken as slaves? And how many more would die before the Egyptians fully consolidated their power here? Hers was far from the only life that had been torn down to rubble today.

And yet those soldiers _cheered_! Shizuru could not decide whether she should weep or be sick. She did neither. She forced herself to stay straight-backed, to swallow the bitter lump in her throat and blink away the tears that wanted to fall.

She stopped watching what was going on around them as they rode by, instead keeping her eyes in front of her, wanting not to see but too proud to hide her face.

Staring directly ahead as she was, she did not notice Natsuki turn her head to look at her. The younger woman could clearly see all the emotions written on Shizuru's face.

After a long moment of watching her captive, Natsuki turned her head back with a scowl tugging at her blackened eyebrows. Without warning, she suddenly flapped the reins to speed the two horses up. Their gait quickened to a canter, kicking up flecks of the loosened, bloodied dirt of the battlefield.

Shizuru tightened her hold on the edge of the chariot box to stay balanced as its movement increased, blinking in confusion. Why had they sped up so abruptly? Was Natsuki suddenly that much more eager to leave the battlefield? She'd remained stoic as she drove, focusing on steering her way smoothly across the battlefield.

Even though the accompanying guards' brisk jog became a run, they were soon left behind by the chariot, and Natsuki ignored their surprised calls. The light from their torches faded, but was soon replenished by a warm glow from all the campfires and torches up ahead. The two women were not far from the edges of the Egyptian camp now. Shizuru worried the horses might falter in the change of light, but they cantered rhythmically towards the big, fire-lit cluster of tents ahead.

"What's your name?"

Light brown eyebrows flew up almost to Shizuru's hairline at the spontaneous question. She whipped her sandy-haired head around to stare at the woman to her right. Natsuki kept her green eyes straight ahead and did not look at her, but Shizuru was sure she had not just imagined the younger woman's question.

In the throne room the two of them had said little, and Shizuru had no idea why the ruler of all Egypt decided to take her as a slave. Then Natsuki _personally_ drove her back to the camp – unheard of for a slave, when riding in Pharaoh's chariot was a great honor even for high-ranking warriors – but completely ignored her the whole trip! Now all of a sudden Natsuki wanted to know her name? The woman could not seem to make up her mind whether or not she was interested in anything about Shizuru.

Shizuru clicked her tongue quietly in irritation. It was a surprise to find that this stranger should vex her so. But then, Shizuru had never liked things she could not understand. Always, it'd been Shizuru who masked her true motives and feelings, letting others drive themselves crazy trying to puzzle her out.

Well, if Natsuki wanted to know her name, it was Fujino Shizuru, the Queen of Fuuka and firstborn daughter of an esteemed noble house.

No... No, she was none of those things, Shizuru realized. Not anymore. She took a deep breath. Her country had fallen, so she was no longer a queen. And even if her parents managed to survive the Egyptian takeover and keep their northern lands, they would surely either assume Shizuru died in the city's sacking or disown her if they found out she was taken as a slave. Either way, she was no longer part of the Fujino family. She did not even consider herself married anymore.

So, she replied to Natsuki as simply as the green-eyed woman asked.

"Shizuru."

_I am just Shizuru now. _That was certainly going to take some getting used to. The next few days would not be easy.

"...Shizuru..." It was a soft murmur, so quiet the brunette almost missed it over the rumble of the moving chariot and the horses' plodding hooves.

Gods, was it wrong of her to want Natsuki to say her name again?

Natsuki slowed the geldings to a trot again once they entered the camp, passing a company of archers patrolling the base's limits.

The Egyptians had only set up camp last night, when they reached the outskirts of Fuuka's capital after four weeks of nonstop westward conquest, but the camp looked well-prepared, at least to Shizuru's eyes.

Small, single-peaked canvas tents covered the ground like bumps on a crocodile's back. Many had a campfire burning outside, though there were also torches for illumination. Common soldiers probably could not be bothered to – or could not afford to – burn candles and oil lamps every night, Shizuru supposed.

The soldiers were segregated by regiment into groups of about a dozen tents with several men sharing each, some bunched in disorganized clusters and others aligned in neat rows. The many foreign mercenaries retained by the Egyptian army had their own small areas, too. Charioteers and high-ranking officers held themselves aloof from the common soldiery, so their own larger tents and servants' areas were gathered in the center of camp, apart from the main bulk of the army.

Natsuki drove on through the outer circles, along a cleared central aisle between the rows of tents toward the camp's heart, where her own command tent probably was.

Nobles were too picky for soldiers' rations, so many brought their own servant cooks with them on the campaign. Those cooks must have spent the afternoon working despite the battle going on not far away, for Shizuru caught the smells of meat stewing over firepits and bread baking in small clay ovens wafting from somewhere deeper in the camp. Less pleasant were the smells of the horse lines and privies dug at the outer edges of camp, but at least those were distant enough to be washed out by other scents.

Again, those triumphal cheers and victory praises rose when the men and women in the camp realized their leader had returned to them. Many of those watching eyes focused on Shizuru herself as she and Natsuki trotted by, no doubt wondering, as Commander Sergei had, who the beautiful foreigner wearing a robe and coronet was and why she rode at Pharaoh's side.

It was hardly a comfortable atmosphere for Shizuru, but it was at least more _alive_ than the quiet horror of the battlefield.

In fact, the place was bursting with life. She'd thought most of the Egyptians would either be looting the city or helping with the cleanup, but there were at least several hundred people here, many of them not even wearing military garb.

Among the majority of olive Egyptians, Shizuru also noticed dark-skinned Nubians, bearded Canaanites in their long-sleeved woolen coats, and even a few curly-haired men she thought might be Syrian or perhaps Hittite, among other peoples she did not recognize. Most of those foreigners were probably mercenaries, or else conquered slaves promised freedom in return for serving in Pharaoh's army.

She shook her head wonderingly. Even most villages did not have so many people, not to mention crammed so close! "...Why are there so many people here?"

"An army isn't just soldiers," Natsuki replied.

Shizuru gave a small start. She hadn't realized she had wondered her last thought aloud. Natsuki launched into a lengthy answer though.

"For start, there are hundreds of workers involved in keeping the supply lines flowing. It's not easy to keep ten thousand soldiers fed. The camp also needs wagonwrights and carpenters to repair the chariots and supply carts, leatherworkers for the men's equipment and the horse and mule harnesses, smiths to maintain the armor and weapons, bowyers and fletchers for the archers..."

As she spoke, the chariot rumbled into the final part of camp, the inner ring where the top officers congregated in tents at least twice the size of those ordinary soldiers slept in. This area was more organized, Shizuru noticed, not to mention cleaner and not as tightly packed, as the surrounding sections had been.

"My army also needs doctors for the injured and diseased," Natsuki continued, "And servants for the officers and tactical advisors. Then there all the slaves captured so far, with several companies of soldiers set to guard them."

Shizuru titled her head thoughtfully at that. Was she was to be kept under guard as well? Natsuki did not seem to think she needed to be, if her attitude so far was any indication. Which meant she was either very arrogant or very trusting of Shizuru, for reasons the brunette in question had no idea.

"Oh," the younger woman added as if the thought just occurred to her, "I also brought scribes with me, of course. That goes without mentioning. You cannot manage any large endeavor without scribes to organize and record, whether it's going to war, collecting taxes, taking the biannual census, or building a temple. This isn't even the only camp we set up, just the main one."

Well, that response was certainly illuminating, but Shizuru was more than a little surprised Natsuki had bothered to tell her all that. Did she make a habit of conversing with her slaves like they were friendly companions, or did she just want to relieve the silence between the two of them?

She cut her musings short when Natsuki drew rein in front of what had to be the largest tent Shizuru had ever seen. The thing had _three _peaks! How many of her slaves had to work for how long to pitch that thing every time the army set up a new camp as they traveled? Lit torches on sticks taller than a person ringed the tent, along with more spear-carrying guards.

The younger woman had stopped right in front of the tent's opening, and as she draped the reins across the front of the chariot box and made to climb off, a slave came running out to hold the horses by their bridles and lead them away. Natsuki gave the man stern orders for them to be fed and properly rubbed down after the day's exertion.

By the time the two women stepped down from the chariot – Shizuru again disdaining an offered hand – Natsuki's other guards had caught up to them again, panting from the run and disgruntled over the fact that their charge had "endangered" herself by leaving them behind even for a few minutes. Glowering, they joined the unit already stationed around the tent for Pharaoh's protection. She probably needed no protection in the heat of her own camp, but they seemed to want to make up for being outpaced earlier.

Natsuki fixed her emerald eyes on Shizuru, meeting the former queen's gaze directly for only the third time since they met, and in that low voices of hers said, "Come, Shizuru."

She turned and entered the tent as if absolutely sure Shizuru would follow.

But Shizuru hesitated outside. Trying to escape now was hardly a viable option, not in the middle of the enemy camp, but for a moment she did consider running.

After all, she knew nothing of this strange woman, or what she demanded of her slaves. Natsuki apparently did not intend to toss the brunette to her soldiers for them to violate or torture or force into back-breaking labor... but what guarantee did Shizuru have that Natsuki herself wasn't capable of doing those things to her?

A tremor ran through her as she dwelt on the possibilities awaiting her just a few feet away, on the other side of that tentflap.

_No, I've come this far. I won't succumb to fear now. And I certainly won't run away!_

At last, she nodded to herself with as much confidence as she could muster, and stepped into the tent after Natsuki.

* * *

AN: I know this chapter was kinda slow, but Ch.3 has plenty of ShizNat interaction to make up for it, and then in Ch.4... fufu...


	3. In Her Talons

Feel free to spank me for the delay, I deserve it.

This fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

* * *

Shizuru nodded to herself with as much confidence as she could muster, and stepped into the tent after Natsuki.

It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the dim light of only a few candles after coming in from the torch-lit camp outside. Now that the tent's occupant had returned though, a slave came in holding a thin stick with one hand cupped around the small flame burning at its end. He went around the tent with it, lighting the remaining oil lamps and yellow beeswax candles in their holders until they had diffused a warm glow throughout the spacious interior. A round opening in one of the tent peaks let in a glimpse of the starry night sky.

Natsuki hadn't told her what to do, but Shizuru did not want to remain in the threshold where anyone coming or going from the tent would brush past her, so she made her way over to one side of the tent where she hoped she wouldn't draw much attention. Her head swiveled back and forth as she walked, taking in everything she saw.

There were at least a dozen other slaves already in the tent, men and women who stood waiting quietly in a line along one wall with their eyes meekly downcast. They all looked clean and healthy, though they were barefoot and lacking ornamentation, the men bare-chested in plain _shenti_s and the women in simple sleeveless dresses.

There was little impractical ornamentation in the tent itself too. Between the tall poles that held up the tent's three peaks were a few unobtrusively placed metal stands and racks that would hold Pharaoh's armor and weapons, and more intricately decorated smaller stands of Greek silver to hold several of her crowns.

Arks and chests that probably held Natsuki's clothing, equipment, and whatever else she needed with her on campaign were pushed up against the sloping canvas walls of the tent. They were varied shapes and sizes, the largest almost as big as a sarcophagus. Bronze-strapped sycamore wood made up the heavier arks and furniture, with red acacia for the smaller chests. There were two tables in the tent, one large and made of thick cedar from one of the Phoenician colonies by the eastern Mediterranean, the other small and slender-legged, carved of ivory.

Overlapping rugs made up the floor, most of thickly-woven cloth patterned in blue and black and red, others of plainer stitched hide. There were also hides and furs draped over the furniture. Some looked to be exotic imports brought across the Egyptian empire's extensive trade routes – like the cedar and silver – while others were skins of animals Natsuki herself probably hunted for sport: gazelle, lions, desert foxes, black-striped hyenas. There was even a leopard pelt spread atop her bed in one corner.

The woman in question relaxed visibly now that she was back in her temporary home, away from the eyes of her soldiers and subjects. Rolling her now-loosened shoulders, she reached up to pull off the helmet-like War Crown, and Shizuru's breath caught.

Her hair was blue. A deep, dark blue like the Nile itself. Released from its confines, it flowed down her back, streaming almost to her hips. Natsuki ran a hand through it casually, unaware of Shizuru's stare.

_That long hair must get awfully hot_, Shizuru thought absently as she admired it. She'd been told that most Egyptian nobles shaved their heads and wore decorative wigs, but she was pleased to see Natsuki chose not to.

A teenage girl popped into the tent just then, her auburn hair tied back and split into two thin braids that bobbed as she walked. She wore a white sheath dress like the other female slaves, but unlike them she also wore sandals and narrow golden bands around her wrists and upper arms. She didn't move to join the other slaves standing quietly in line, but stood a bit apart from them and looked at Natsuki expectantly.

"All of you are dismissed until I have need of you," the dark-haired woman said. "Arika, you stay."

Natsuki had not even looked at her slaves – her _other_ slaves, Shizuru reminded herself ruefully – but they bowed in unison and filed silently out of the tent, leaving only the three women standing atop the layered rugs.

A low-backed chair sat at the center of the tent, positioned so anyone walking in would have their eyes drawn to it. The chair seemed to be doing its best to announce itself too, with its gilded frame and back inlaid with ivory and precious stones that caught the light of the flames. Winged silver cobras graced the sides of the chair, and its armrests ended in carved golden lion heads. Up the claw-footed legs and across the low back marched colorful hieroglyphs proclaiming the many royal names of its owner and offering prayers for her continued reign.

Natsuki went to her throne and folded her lithe body into it, propping her crown on one armrest. She did not quite slouch, but she certainly made it seem as if she were sitting at her ease. Shizuru decided the younger woman must be faking it; that overly-fancy chair looked terribly uncomfortable.

The other slave – Arika, Natsuki had called her – approached Shizuru and looked her up and down with open curiosity.

"Who're you then?" she asked brightly.

Shizuru chuckled at the girl's cheeriness. "My name is Shizuru. Pleasure to meet you, Arika-san." She smiled at the younger brunette and, on a whim, gave her a quick wink. Her smile widened when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Natsuki's brow furrow slightly.

Arika tilted her head and returned Shizuru's smile with a friendly grin that somehow made her look even younger. "I've never heard anyone talk like you, Shizuru-san."

"Ara? I should imagine you Egyptians have been hearing the Fuuka dialect for the past several weeks."

"Oh, yes, I suppose. But I haven't talked to any of the local people or the captured slaves before. I'm just one of Natsuki-sama's attendants."

A scowling Natsuki cut into their conversation with a terse, "That's enough banter." She shot Arika a warning look that passed right over the oblivious girl's head, then faced Shizuru again.

"Do you have something on under there?" she asked, lifting her chin briefly to indicate Shizuru's wide-sleeved purple robe.

Hesitantly, Shizuru nodded.

"Then take the robe off. The jewelry too."

Shizuru arched an eyebrow. That hadn't been the same imperious tone Natsuki had used when ordering her other slaves about. It was said as just a simple direction, although one she expected immediate compliance with.

With a small sigh, Shizuru's hands went to the back of her neck to unclasp her gold necklace set with amethysts as Natsuki had told her. She took off the braided silver coronet too and held the two pieces of jewelry in her hands, uncertain where to put them.

The small ivory table right beside Natsuki's throne caught her eye. Shizuru's lips twitched mischievously. Without warning, she casually tossed her necklace and coronet at the small table.

Natsuki had to snatch them out of the air before they smacked her in the face. Her adorable expression of surprise said she was unsure whether Shizuru had meant for them to hit her or if she merely had terrible aim. Shizuru bit her lip to keep from laughing and hoped Natsuki settled on the latter.

Natsuki glowered at her, but the red-eyed woman only gave her a "you asked for them" look and continued undressing. She draped her embroidered sash and robe over the top of the nearest chest and kicked off her thin-soled shoes, leaving her wearing nothing but her thin linen shift that covered her from shoulders to knees and left her arms bare.

Seeing that her glower was having no effect on Shizuru, Natsuki grumbled something under her breath and reached over to let the jewelry drop onto the little ivory table. As she stretched her arm over, Arika let out a gasp.

"Natsuki-sama! You're injured!"

Shizuru's head whipped around, her eyes following Arika's pointing finger. The girl was right; the edge of a small cut Shizuru had not noticed earlier was barely visible on Natsuki's right bicep, mostly covered by the wide golden armband.

"Oh, that was hours ago," Natsuki said dismissively, "I thought the enemy's arrow was headed for my heart, but the gods must have turned its flight so that it only grazed my arm. I just moved the armband over it and kept fighting."

Arika's braids flailed as she shook her head rapidly back and forth. "You should've worn your amulet today, Natsuki-sama! How are you supposed to be protected all the time if you don't wear a blessed amulet?" The excitable girl seemed to take it as a personal failure of hers that her master took an injury, no matter how small.

"You are overreacting, Arika," Natsuki said placatingly, "It's only a tiny scratch."

Shizuru watched the exchange with interest. Natsuki and Arika were not friendly with each other, not exactly, but they seemed... comfortable with their relative positions. Their interactions had the air of a woman and her long-time retainer and companion, not an owner and slave.

It was certainly a day for surprises. _Nothing is turning out as I expected_, she thought. How could this calm but arrogant young woman be the same fierce leader who'd commanded the battle Shizuru had just seen the gruesome aftermath of?

She was pleased to see Natsuki opening up a little. If the former queen was to survive as a slave, she needed to learn about her new master. What she expected of her slaves and when, what she allowed, what she would punish... and most importantly how to avoid becoming nothing but an outlet for her master's anger. Shizuru had survived Reito's fits of temper and cruelty the same way: through careful observation and even more careful manipulation. He had not treated her any better than he did his slaves, and she'd been powerless to stop him. Shizuru was determined not to let herself be treated in such a way ever again, not by Natsuki or by anyone, even if it meant choosing death instead.

Some of the fear that had been plaguing her all night was finally ebbing away. Not gone completely, of course – it was still too early to trust her safety to Natsuki's whims – but the hammering panic had been replaced by curiosity along with the determination. Shizuru _wanted _to get to know this strange woman who had snatched her up from her lavish yet miserable life, claiming her like a falcon seizing a snake in its talons and carrying it off.

As Shizuru mused, Arika chattered on, insisting that she be allowed to fetch a salve for Natsuki's cut. The dark-haired woman finally gave a nod of permission and said, "Bring Shizuru a more suitable outfit while you're at it."

She reached over to the table again, picking up the coronet and necklace and holding them out for Arika to take. "And tell Commander Sergei I said to give these as a reward to the captain who captured her."

Arika took the jewelry without comment and immediately trotted out of the tent to see to the orders she had been given. A good servant did not waste their master's time by lavishing titles on them and bowing after every sentence; Natsuki spoke and Arika obeyed, with no delay in between. Natsuki might not want to listen to all those royal titles and praises in private anyway.

Shizuru almost rolled her eyes at what the younger woman had said. "Captured her" indeed. All that man did was walk her through the palace to meet Pharaoh. Each one of those amethysts alone was likely worth more than his whole house and everything in it!

Natsuki seemed to notice Shizuru's irritation at watching her things be given away so blithely. "My soldiers risk their lives for me," the dark-haired woman explained once Arika had left. "They go into battle with the belief that my will is the right course of action, that even if they fall their souls will still carry my holy blessings into the afterlife. Loyalty like that deserves to be rewarded in this life too, not just in death."

Wisely, Shizuru refrained from telling her exactly what she thought of Pharaoh's avowed "holiness". So, she said nothing in response. Natsuki had not been harsh with Shizuru yet, and maybe she was lax on discipline when it came to all her personal attendants, but there must be a limit. No ruler would allow a slave to undermine them in such a way, and Shizuru did not intend to be flogged for disrespect within hours of meeting her new master. Actually, she was a little surprised she hadn't been already.

Besides, she reasoned, some of that arrogance was not Natsuki's fault. Natsuki had been fed those beliefs since birth, and Egyptian society revolved around faith in the Pharaoh's god-guided leadership. It had been so for over a thousand years. Perhaps she truly did believe she was a god, despite the level-headedness she had shown so far.

It suddenly occurred to Shizuru that Natsuki had kept her eyes trained on Shizuru's face the entire time she spoke. _Only_ on her face. Was Natsuki forcing herself to avoid looking at anything lower, now that her captive was undressed? _You're imagining things, Shizuru_.

Another person entered the tent just then. Shizuru hoped it would be Arika returning with some clothes already, but this was a different woman, with short rosy hair and a short-sleeved white robe that went to her ankles. She carried a rectangular writing tablet along with sheets of beige papyrus paper.

The scribe bowed deeply to Pharaoh in her throne, and Natsuki greeted her with, "Ah, Irina. Good. Do you have today's reports for me yet?"

The redhead straightened, smoothing her linen robe. "Yes, Natsuki-sama." She shuffled through her papers until she found the ones Natsuki had asked for.

Shizuru shifted uncomfortably on her bare feet at the woman's entrance. Here was yet another stranger to see her wearing nothing but a barely opaque shift. True, the scribe had barely glanced at Shizuru upon entering, but still! In the past, Shizuru had had close servants and slaves bathe and dress her quite often, but this was different. She was not in control here. Arika and Irina were not _her_ servants, they were the servants of a woman Shizuru barely knew. One she barely had reason to trust.

She wanted to hug herself closely in modesty, but she settled for loosely crossing her arms over her chest. She refused to let the other women – one in particular – know they made her uncomfortable.

Irina cleared her throat before she began reading off her long list. "First Division, Second Company of Ptah, captain reported three casualties in today's fighting. Third Company of Ptah, captain reported no casualties in the battle but one man wounded and another dead from a previous infection. Fifth Company of..."

Two and a half divisions, each division having two hundred fifty companies of twenty soldiers each. Irina went through the numbers for every company whose captain had reported in already after the day's battle, and Natsuki listened to them all attentively, putting Shizuru out of her mind for the moment.

Shizuru wasn't bothered; she stopped paying attention soon after Irina began. She'd had enough of deaths and casualties for one day, and no desire to listen to emotionless numbers being recited as if a bloody battle were mere arithmetic.

As the scribe's voice droned on, Shizuru let her eyes wander around her own little side of the tent. They were caught by a half-rolled square of papyrus resting atop a knee-high acacia chest she stood by.

Curious, she picked it up and unrolled it the rest of the way.

To her surprise, it was a painting. She had never seen an Egyptian painting on papyrus before, only ones on walls of former Egyptian structures in Fuuka. This painting was not large and formal like those decorating the temples and such, but it was the only one in the tent, so it must have some significance to its owner.

It was a leisurely hunting scene. Four figures stood by the bank of a stream blooming with white lotuses and green papyrus stalks taller than a person. A few ducks had been startled into flight above the stalks by the hunters, their wings frozen in motion. Shizuru's gaze landed on the images of the four people, and after a moment she realized she must be looking at the royal family.

At the center of the picture stood a tall older man wearing the Pharaoh's blue-and-gold striped headcloth with a golden cobra set above his forehead. The vulture goddess, patron of Upper Egypt and one of Pharaoh's divine guardians, was shown with her wings outstretched protectively behind his head, and all around the man were inscribed some of his many titles.

Painted at his side was a dark-haired girl who looked in her early teens. The girl had a short bow in one hand and was pointing eagerly at the flying ducks with the other. Her father had drawn his own larger bow so that the arrow's fletchings brushed his cheek as he took aim at the birds.

Another figure, this one wearing a noblewoman's pleated white gown, stood by the older Pharaoh with one arm wrapped around his upper chest from behind in the artistic pose symbolizing wifely support and devotion. Crowning the Queen's dark-haired head were the black bull-horns of the mother goddess, with a crimson sun disk held between them. The fourth person in the picture was another child – blonde and much smaller than the figure of Natsuki, but Shizuru thought it was another daughter – playing around her mother's knees.

Their bodies were painted in the distinctive Egyptian style that was highly symbolic but not very realistic. Yet, even constrained by strict artistic conventions, the scene portrayed liveliness. And something else, too. A kind of warmth and ease Shizuru had never felt with her own family.

"D'you like that, Shizuru-san?"

With a start, Shizuru lifted her eyes from the picture to look at Arika. She'd been so distracted she had not noticed the girl's return.

"It was made years ago, but lately Natsuki-sama stares at it a lot, just like you were now," Arika said quietly. "She was very close to her father..." Her tone became sad, laden with sympathy for her beloved master's loss. "It hit her very hard when his spirit moved on to become one with the god of the afterlife. But of course that also meant the spirit of Pharaoh had to pass to her, and she had no time to grieve."

"How did he die?" Shizuru kept her voice down to match Arika's; she did not want the other two women across the tent to overhear. She rolled the papyrus back up gently as she asked, taking care not to damage the picture, and placed it back atop the chest.

"Pharaoh's body is mortal like the rest of us," Arika replied, "Even though our rulers have the soul of a god, they can still fall to disease or injury." The girl's sadness vanished and her cheeks puffed out in frustration. "Which is why Natsuki-sama should've worn her protective amulet today!" she huffed.

Shizuru chuckled quietly. This girl did act a bit silly, but she was awfully cute. She noticed a bundle held in Arika's arms. "Are those my new clothes?"

Arika looked down at the bundle as if she'd forgotten she was carrying it. "Oh, these!" She looked back up at the older woman, big blue eyes shining excitedly. "Yes, they are. I hope they fit!"

The girl looked at her expectantly, and it took Shizuru a moment to realize she was waiting for the older woman to strip her shift off. Shizuru swallowed and glanced over at Natsuki's throne – discreetly, so Arika wouldn't notice.

The dark-haired woman was still busy with Irina, not looking over at Shizuru and Arika's corner. Irina had evidently finished relaying the reports, for now it was Natsuki who was speaking, while the scribe used a reed stylus to copy down her words onto a new sheet of papyrus.

Shizuru bit her lip, but after another moment's hesitation quickly bent down to pull her shift up and over her head. Naked, she scrambled into the undergarments Arika handed her, hastily wrapping them around her groin and breasts.

Once Shizuru had those on, Arika held out the dress she'd brought. It was a white linen sheath dress that would end halfway down Shizuru's calves and cover up to the tops of her breasts, with two shoulder straps to keep it in place, much like what the blue-eyed girl wore. The fabric was thin and light to ease the heat of the daytime.

The dress was far plainer than anything the former queen had ever worn, but she breathed a little sigh of relief upon seeing it. Part of her had worried Natsuki would make her parade around in one of those indecent transparent garments Reito had forced his slave girls to wear, when he let them wear anything at all.

Shizuru pulled the dress on and settled it about her body. To Arika's happiness, it did fit. Well, everywhere except her breasts, which strained at the linen a little. But Shizuru could live with that. It was not uncomfortable, although it did inadvertently emphasize the area.

Arika had also brought her a pair of sandals, as well as golden armbands and wristbands. Why a Pharaoh would want their personal slaves to wear simple dresses yet then gave them expensive jewelry was beyond her, but Shizuru smiled when she noticed the slender armbands were in the shape of a snake that would coil around her bicep.

The sandals were of woven papyrus reed, sturdy but not too rough on the delicate soles of her feet. It took her a moment to figure out how to fasten their ankle straps properly, but she insisted on doing it without Arika's help. Once Shizuru put everything on, she was wearing the same outfit the younger brunette was, only in a slightly larger size.

Relief filled her at being fully clothed again. She gave Arika a grateful smile and went with her to stand by where Natsuki and Irina were finishing up their conversation.

"You can go now, Irina," Natsuki was saying as the other two women approached, "Distribute those orders to the field commanders tonight so they can pick which companies will be accompanying me back to the capital tomorrow. We should be back in Waset in half a week, give or take."

Shizuru was so surprised that she blurted out, "That soon?" As soon the words left her mouth, she realized Natsuki must mean an Egyptian week; their calendar organized each month into three weeks of ten days, not four of seven like Fuuka's.

Natsuki answered her anyway. She did not seem upset at Shizuru's interruption. "I'm leaving almost all the archers and footsoldiers here with Haruka, so we'll travel much faster. Even so, it'll take several days to reach the capital."

Dismissed, Irina gathered her papers and carefully stoppered her ink bottle while Natsuki was speaking to Shizuru. She gave Pharaoh a deep bow before ducking back out of the tentflap. Natsuki stood once she was gone.

"If I could speed us up any more, I would," she went on, "I've only held the throne for two months, and the last month has been spent fighting in Fuuka. I have important issues to see to back in Waset. Besides," she added with a half-smile, "My soldiers aren't the only ones who miss their families."

That piqued Shizuru's curiosity again, but before she could decide whether Natsuki would tolerate more questions from her, Arika spoke up.

"Should I go get some food from the cooks' work area, Natsuki-sama? You only had a little for breakfast, and I'll bet you didn't bother to stop for lunch today either." Somehow, Arika's insistent manner managed to seem almost motherly despite her being at least five years younger than her master.

"I didn't eat because it's not good to fight on a full stomach," Natsuki said with a casual shrug. At Arika's huff, Natsuki sighed. "Oh, alright."

Arika beamed. "Make it two servings," Natsuki called after her as the girl trotted out of the tent again.

_Two?_ Shizuru wondered. Today's battle must have made Natsuki hungry.

The dark-haired woman strode over the the thick cedar table Shizuru had noticed earlier, dropping herself down onto one of the low, square wooden stools to wait for Arika's return. She made a pretty – if odd – sight sitting there calmly in her gem-set, gold-plated scale mail, dark powder lining and shadowing her eyes, hair flowing loose about her shoulders. Green eyes met red again.

"Sit, Shizuru." Natsuki gestured to the other side of the table. "Don't try telling me you are not hungry."

Shizuru's eyes popped in shock.

Pharaoh wanted to _dine_ with her? Gods, was she a slave or a royal guest? Shizuru's parents would've taken the head of anyone who even suggested that they would stoop so low as to share a meal with their slaves! And they had certainly never allowed their daughter to do so with her own servants, not even her one or two trusted attendants. Eating with your slaves simply was not done.

On the other hand, only two servings also meant Arika would not be eating with them, and she had been in Natsuki's service longer. So was it just Shizuru Natsuki was giving this ridiculous honor to? _Why?_

Shizuru shook her head at the bizarreness of it all, everything that had happened between them tonight. Natsuki kept bouncing between treating Shizuru like a slave and like a companion, hopping from stance to stance like a lizard on hot sand. She certainly was spontaneous.

Slowly, she walked to the table, still partially wondering if she'd heard Natsuki correctly. She sat opposite the younger woman, settling herself onto the cushion atop the other low stool. The table was larger than most, but still short enough from those sides that the two women could have reached across to touch each other's hands.

Arika must have had someone waiting with the food, for it was less than a minute before she bustled happily back into the tent bearing a tray laden with dishes.

She showed no surprise at seeing Shizuru sitting opposite their master at the table, which either meant that Natsuki had done this sort of thing before or that Arika didn't care what Natsuki did as long as she got a decent meal in her.

The blue-eyed girl placed two bowls of Egyptian beer onto the table, followed by a platter holding a round loaf of crusty wheat bread and a wedge of some kind of cheese with a smell that made Shizuru's nose crinkle.

With the bread and beer came a hot stew of onions, lentils, and, surprisingly, tender chunks of beef. Only the wealthy could afford to eat beef regularly, and even then only once or twice a week. The stew gave off the tangy scent of expensive imported spices, and all the food was served on silver dishes. It seemed Pharaohs ate like kings even when fighting a war.

At Natsuki's direction, Arika excused herself once the meal was laid out, leaving the two of them alone in the tent again. The dark-haired woman wasted no time digging in, lifting her wide bowl of beer to her mouth with both hands to gulp it down.

After a moment, Shizuru followed suit. She took just a sip at first to see how it tasted.

_Mmmm... _This Egyptian beer was much thicker than the liquid beer brewed in Fuuka; this was more like rich porridge, and served heated instead of cold. But it was still quite good, and her next mouthful slid smoothly down her throat and warmed her all the way to her belly.

From its taste, the beer was probably low in alcohol, which was preferable; it certainly would not do for Shizuru to get drunk on her first night in Pharaoh's service. Who knew what sort of pains – _or pleasures_, her small inner voice insisted mockingly, _you know there must be _some_ reason she wanted you for herself_ – one of them getting drunk tonight might lead to.

Natsuki gulped her food with a rather undignified eagerness, but Shizuru ate in a more graceful manner. The taller woman finished off her stew and beer and wiped up the last smears of both with a hunk of bread Natsuki tore from the loaf for her. But she avoided the smelly cheese and discreetly pushed its platter a little closer to Natsuki's side of the cedar table.

The rug beneath their table and stools was an odd thing, patterned in black and white stripes that tapered to points. It looked like some sort of animal skin, but Shizuru knew of no animal colored so. Out of idle curiosity, she asked Natsuki what it was between bites of bread.

Natsuki wiped the back of her hand across her mouth before answering. "It was part of the wedding tribute given to me by the mother of my second wife. Her mother is leader of several tribes of nomadic herders in the southern desert. Apparently, her people have never seen any such beast either, but they trade with tribes from even farther south for their skins. Some kind of donkey, I think they say."

A striped donkey? That bizarre little detail was not what caught Shizuru's attention though. Going wide-eyed, she tried to gasp but ended up almost inhaling the piece of bread she was chewing.

Once she could manage to speak, she choked out, "You're married?" _And did she say her _second _wife?_

Black-painted eyebrows rose almost to Natsuki's hairline. "Of course I am..." She looked almost as surprised as Shizuru, as if the older woman had asked a completely redundant question.

"I'm not the first woman to become Pharaoh, but even with a woman ruler Egypt still needs a Great Royal Wife, a Queen, to perform all the separate duties of that position and act as regent while I'm away at war. I can't be both Pharaoh _and _Queen.

"And having secondary wives for Pharaoh helps ensure peaceable relations with foreign leaders, or bind other noble Egyptian families in alliance to our dynasty. My mother was my father's Queen, but he had three lesser wives."

"Ara, ara..." Shizuru mumbled in amazement. Two wives. And Natsuki seemed to think that was few for a Pharaoh! They had no such thing in Fuuka for either gender, thankfully. The thought of being married to two Reitos, or _four_, made Shizuru's stomach roil!

She shifted helplessly on her stool cushion, still a bit dazed. She was at a loss, having no idea what to say – a rare occurrence for her. Even more confusing to her was that she also had no idea what to feel, or whether she _should_ feel anything at all. Inwardly, she chastised herself for being so foolish. _What in heavens were you expecting, Shizuru?_ _You know nothing about her. And why should it matter to you anyway if she is already married?_

"Are you in love with either of them?"

The question popped out before Shizuru could stop it. Her eyes went wide again and she nearly clapped a hand over her mouth. Gods, what possessed her to ask such a thing? She never would have allowed such impertinence from one of her own slaves! But then... if Natsuki saw her as a slave then why were they here now, sharing a meal and carrying on a conversation?

Even more surprising was Natsuki's reaction. There was no anger, or even shock. Instead, her eyebrows settled back down and drew into that small, thoughtful scowl that was becoming familiar. Her gaze fell away from Shizuru and onto the dark tabletop between them. The younger woman idly ran a fingertip around the silver rim of her empty bowl as she thought on how to answer. It was several moments before she said anything.

"Mai... Mai was born to a prominent noble family in Lower Egypt, near the Delta..." Natsuki looked up again, but she seemed to be staring at something far away rather than at the woman sitting across from her. "We were betrothed as children once Father decided I would be his heir rather than wait for a son. Mai's been my closest friend for as long as I can remember, and when we were wed at my coronation, she became my political partner as well. Sometimes I don't think I could handle ruling Egypt without her by my side as Queen."

There was another long pause, and when Natsuki finally answered Shizuru's question, she spoke slowly, as if voicing something she never had before.

"No... No, I'm not _in_ love with her. Nor she with me, I know for sure." Another of those half-smiles replaced the little scowl on her face. "I think someone else holds her heart, even if Mai doesn't fully realize it yet.

"As for my other wife, the daughter of the foreign tribal leader..." Natsuki rolled her eyes. "I haven't known her long, but I think if I ever asked her about love she'd either laugh in my face or claw me bloody. Maybe both."

Shizuru let out a breath she had not realized she'd been holding. _She is not in love with them. But why should I care?_

"It's strange," Natsuki murmured, seemingly still lost in thought, "I always knew my parents loved each other, but theirs was also an arranged marriage, and love didn't come to them until many years later. I hoped it would be the same for me, that someday I would find love with one of the women that duty put into my life."

Natsuki sighed quietly. "Until then, I have responsibilities as Pharaoh. Heirs need to be made, peace and trade fostered instead of war..."

She finally looked at Shizuru again, holding her gaze intently. "The three of us don't even live in the same wing of the palace, much less share rooms. They were both political marriages, you understand?"

Shizuru did understand. She thought of her own experiences with Reito, and a painful lump formed in her throat. She swallowed it defiantly; there was no need to still be afraid of him, no need to waste her hate and contempt on a man who was now dead or worse. At least Natsuki had amicable relationships with _her_ spouses.

And with a few of her personal slaves too, unlikely as that should have seemed. _She is my captor, my master... yet so far she has treated me more kindly than Reito ever did, spoken to me more honestly than my parents ever bothered to._

That still left the question of why she was telling a supposed slave all of this. Shizuru stared into those emerald eyes and searched for a reason in them, but she found nothing. Before she could think of what to say, there came the whisking sound of the canvas tentflap being opened again.

Shizuru brightened at Arika's entrance, or rather at the escape from the confusing conversation her entrance provided. She didn't think she could handle any more revelations from Natsuki today.

Besides, Arika had brought some dessert with her: a big bowl of grapes and pitted dates coated in honey. Dates were easy to preserve, but Shizuru was impressed Natsuki's cooks had managed to find fresh grapes. Secretly, she was also pleased; she had a weakness for sweet things.

Her long, slender fingers darted out to pluck one of the fruits from the bunch almost before Arika had finished putting the bowl down. For the next few minutes, so focused on enjoying the desserts was she that she didn't notice Natsuki watching her movements as the taller woman licked the dates' sticky honey residue from her fingertips.

Natsuki suddenly averted her gaze and cleared her throat loudly. "That's all for tonight, Arika," she said, suddenly back to that commanding tone, "Now go to your sleeping tent with my other slaves and come back in the morning."

Already big blue eyes widened a little more. "But, every night I usually..."

Natsuki cut her off. "It's time for Shizuru to start learning some of the duties she will perform for me as one of my personal slaves."

Arika nodded slowly, and gathered up the empty bowls and plates in her arms on her way out.

When the tentflap dropped closed behind Arika for the final time that night, Natsuki rose somewhat awkwardly from her stool. Her eyes would no longer quite meet Shizuru's, and the former queen found herself wondering exactly what "duties" she was supposed to perform tonight.

Natsuki cleared her throat again. "I usually have Arika wash me," she said, "But..."

Was that a hint of color on the younger woman's cheeks that had not been there before, or was it just a trick of the candlelight?

"You... you will bathe me from now on, Shizuru. Starting tonight."

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AN: I gotta admit, it really would've taken them weeks to travel all the way back to the capital (not to mention it would've taken them months to conquer Fuuka in the first place). I sped it up because I want to get them back to Egypt so the other plots can pick up, so please excuse this break from reality.

Will try to make future chapters a bit shorter. Don't want readers to die of starvation before they reach the end of the update.

Next chapter should be fun. ;)


	4. Bones of Silver, Skin of Gold

I can't thank all of you enough for your overwhelmingly positive feedback and for your patience with me. Every one of you makes my day.

This fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

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"You... you will bathe me from now on, Shizuru. Starting tonight."

Shizuru's eyebrows rose. _Bathe her? Ara, ara..._

She was not sure if that was better or worse than what she had been expecting Natsuki to command her to do.

Not waiting for a response, Natsuki walked to the far side of the tent. A woven reed rug covered that little washing area, and on the red acacia washstand sat a basin and a long-necked pitcher – both gold, of course; at this point, Shizuru would bet that even Pharaoh's chamberpot was made of gold. The washstand also held a folded washcloth, woolen toweling, and an alabaster jar, as well as the little ceramic jar of ointment Arika had brought earlier for the cut on Natsuki's arm.

Hesitantly, Shizuru rose from her seat at the dinner table and followed Natsuki over. Mostly to cover her uncertainty, she said, "I had assumed Natsuki was old enough to bathe herself." A mischievous smile found its way onto Shizuru's face. "Do you also need me to change your swaddling and sing a lullaby?"

Natsuki froze. The look on the dark-haired woman's face was entertaining enough that Shizuru almost did not realize her own mistake. For a moment, she thought she had finally crossed the line. If Natsuki looked shocked though, it was not because her new slave had just called her by name.

Natsuki recovered and shook her head good-naturedly. "Almost every Egyptian noble has slaves wash them," she explained. "Don't tell me you didn't once have servants who did the same for you."

Shizuru laughed, relief erasing her uncertainty. Natsuki was, surprisingly, not angry with Shizuru for the teasing remark. "I did," she replied, "But not every day " _And none of them were as beautiful as you_, she added in her head.

"Well, it's time for you to learn how to do it yourself every day," Natsuki said firmly as she moved to stand atop the reed rug.

"You don't have a bathtub?" Shizuru asked, looking around the tent again. In Fuuka, noblewomen bathed in copper bathtubs in tile-floored bathrooms, but she supposed people traveling on a war campaign had to make do with less.

Natsuki shrugged. "I saw no need to have my slaves bring one for me. Even if they had, it would mean I'd have to wait for them to heat all the bath water over a fire and then carry it in by the bucketful, then carry it all out once I was done. Much easier to just stand here and have only one slave wash me."

"I see..." Shizuru resisted the urge to shift nervously, instead forcing herself to stand up straight and unconcerned. When she had first met this woman, she had been afraid the rough-voiced Pharaoh might try to force herself on Shizuru. But Natsuki had been almost... _friendly_ with her new slave so far, ridiculous as that should have sounded. Despite her common sense telling her to stay wary, Shizuru found herself starting to trust this strange young woman. A little.

Well, Natsuki had mentioned that Arika did this same task every day, so the former queen was sure she could manage it too. Shizuru began by pouring some water from the pitcher into the basin and unfolding the linen washcloth. There was no soap, but the alabaster jar proved to hold some sort of cleansing cream that Natsuki directed her to rub on like it was soap. Natsuki's skin had to be wetted first though, she told Shizuru, or the cream would not clean as well.

Of course, before she could do any of that, Natsuki's clothes had to be removed. The dark-haired woman looked at her expectantly.

Taking a deep breath, Shizuru began undressing her.

She started at the bottom, kneeling to undo the ankle straps of Natsuki's leather sandals. Once the sandals were loose, Natsuki casually kicked them off and nudged them to the side with her foot where they would not get in the way.

Shizuru stood again and moved her hands to Natsuki's waist. The gold-tooled leather belt was unbuckled as easily as the sandals had been, and Natsuki motioned for Shizuru to simply drop it atop the sandals.

_So far, so good._

Natsuki's armbands and wristbands were solid gold, and as wide as her palm. Their tiny clasps were tighter than those on Shizuru's narrower snake-shaped armbands so that they would not slide down Natsuki's arms during a battle, and Shizuru had to use her thumbnails to pry them open.

The red-eyed woman then unwound the pleated white linen _shenti_ that wrapped around her new mistress's waist and thighs. Shizuru was amazed at the steadiness of her own hands. She would have though they'd be shaking like reeds in the wind.

A light breeze gusted through the encampment, stirring the edges of the canvas tentflaps and making a soft susurrus as Shizuru worked. The other distant noises of the surrounding camp had died down as most of its residents prepared themselves for sleep, save for those who would remain awake on guard duty or celebrating the day's victory. The lack of other sounds drifting into the tent somehow made the silence between the two women more noticeable.

Next to be removed was the gold-plated bronze scale-mail tunic covering Natsuki's torso. A row of leather laces marched up each side of the tunic from the dark-haired woman's hip to her ribs, encasing her in the armor. Shizuru plucked them undone until the armor was loose enough for her to pull up and over Natsuki's head. Well, she tried to pull it up and over. The gem-set tunic proved to be heavier than she had anticipated, and she nearly dropped it back onto Natsuki's shoulders.

Natsuki shook her head wryly, but said nothing. Perhaps she, too, was afraid to break the nervous silence that had fallen between them. It occurred to Shizuru that Natsuki might be almost as on edge as she was; after all, she knew just as little about her new slave as Shizuru knew of her. Nevertheless, Natsuki reached up to help Shizuru. Their hands brushed as they pulled together on the armor, lifting it off the shorter woman's body.

Natsuki took the tunic in her arms and walked a few paces over to place it onto the shoulder-high bronze stand that would hold it until she had need of it again.

Shizuru took the opportunity of Natsuki's back being turned to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. But it was only a few moments before Natsuki returned to stand atop the reed rug again and motion for Shizuru to continue undressing her.

There was a sleeveless linen shirt under the armor to cushion her body from the metal. Natsuki raised her arms so the taller woman could pull it over her head. At least she could manage lifting _that_. Shizuru nearly let out a tense giggle at the thought.

All Natsuki had left on now was a light cloth covering her groin, and another wound firmly around her breasts to support them. To Shizuru's dismay, her hands did shake a little as she removed Natsuki's undergarments.

With the last pieces of Natsuki's clothing in her hands, Shizuru paused, unable to stop herself from staring.

From Natsuki's feet, to her cute little knees, Shizuru's gaze stroked up, taking in Natsuki's hips and flat stomach. Farther up Shizuru went, admiring how years of archery had worked her arms and shoulders into well-defined muscles. Strong muscles, soft curves, and all of it covered in lightly sun-bronzed skin.

Shizuru's eyes were pulled to the only two areas of her that were untanned. Well, perhaps it was the areas themselves rather than the fact they were untanned that snatched Shizuru's attention. Pale skin covered her breasts, groin, and thighs, the only areas that escaped the sun's rays in her normal clothing.

Natsuki was not tall, nor very well-endowed, but all of her attributes were so perfectly proportioned that none of her curves looked either too large or too small for her athletic frame.

It felt strange to stand there fully clothed while Natsuki was completely...

She suddenly realized Natsuki was quite aware that Shizuru was ogling the younger woman. A flush had tinted Pharaoh's cheeks red; she was probably unused to feeling a slave's eyes on her in such a way. Shizuru wondered why Natsuki did not punish her for staring disrespectfully, as she no doubt would have with any other of her slaves. Now it was Shizuru's turn to flush. Biting her lip in embarrassment at being caught staring, Shizuru quickly returned to the task at hand.

Now she could actually begin washing Natsuki. The sooner she started, she told herself, the sooner she would be finished.

She decided to wash Natsuki's face first. She dipped the washcloth into the water basin and brought it up to gently wipe her brow, her cheeks, her petite nose, her soft lips. An inappropriate urge to trace the lines of Natsuki's face with her fingertips suddenly flared in Shizuru, but she tamped it down. The black kohl powder that painted Natsuki's eyelids and lashes came off surprisingly easily, leaving a dark stain on a corner of the cloth.

That done, Shizuru dipped her hands into the golden basin and cupped a handful of water, lifting it to pour slowly over Natsuki's head. She tried very hard to ignore the way Natsuki closed her eyes and tilted her head back under the stream, and the way the flowing water coursed down the smooth contours of her bare body. It was not easy.

She kept pouring handfuls of water over the other woman's head and shoulders until enough had dripped down to moisten every inch of her. The excess water splashed lightly onto the reed rug.

It was time to use the cleansing cream Natsuki had shown her earlier. This part would be worse, the taller woman realized. _Or better, in a way..._ _I think I could learn to enjoy this "duty" every night._ Her nervousness was being slowly stripped away, layer by layer, just as she had stripped the clothes from Natsuki.

She uncapped the alabaster jar of cream and dipped her fingers into it. It smelled strongly of attar of leaves blended with some sort of herbal perfume. The same perfume she had noticed Natsuki wearing during their ride back to camp. Heavens, that seemed ages ago, although it had only been a few hours since she met this woman. How had her entire life changed so much in so short a time?

Lightly, almost shyly at first, Shizuru began rubbing the cream onto Natsuki with her fingers. It glistened in the light of the candles as she rubbed it on, reflecting some of their soft golden glow until it seemed like the wet skin beneath Shizuru's roving hands had a luster all its own.

_She really is like a god_, Shizuru thought, _with skin of gold and bones of silver, just like the legends_.

Shizuru continued her task methodically. Or at least attempted to. As she ran her hands over Natsuki's body, she tried to act indifferent, as if she were just washing a pet or a baby. Not that the former queen had ever done either, actually. And Natsuki was certainly no baby, what with her firm limbs and flat stomach and deliciously rounded...

_Stop right there, Shizuru! _she snapped at herself. _Don't think, just work. _She hoped she was not blushing again.

Once she had rubbed on enough cream, Shizuru rinsed it off with more handfuls of water from the basin. Eager now to be finished, she grabbed the wet washcloth to quickly scrub away the rest.

Lastly, she cleaned around the cut on Natsuki's upper arm, getting rid of the dried, flaking blood. She took care to move the damp cloth gently to avoid breaking the thin scabbing that had already formed over the small wound.

When Natsuki reached for the little medicine jar Arika had brought earlier, the sandy-haired woman got there first, batting Natsuki's hand away and dipping two fingers into the ointment. It was a sticky unguent of honey and herb oil, and after she finished applying it lightly over the cut, Shizuru had to use the washcloth to clean the remains off her fingers.

When Shizuru stepped back, finally finished, Natsuki raised her eyebrows at her. There were two areas the older woman had deliberately neglected.

Shizuru met her gaze unwaveringly. Those emerald eyes seemed to... dare. Shizuru ignored it; she had already used up all her courage today, and was not ready to tackle that particular task just yet.

"You can take care of the rest by yourself, I believe," Shizuru said briskly, thrusting the damp cloth into Natsuki's hands. "And if washing even a part of yourself is too difficult a task for the mighty Pharaoh to manage, call Arika-san back to do it." Her tone was sarcastic, but she turned her back firmly on the other woman.

Natsuki grumbled under her breath, but surprisingly did not chastise Shizuru for mocking her again. She was soon done washing herself, so Shizuru faced her again and handed her one of the woolen towels from the washstand. Shizuru supposed a good slave would have dried her mistress off too, but Natsuki did not tell her to.

The shorter woman shook her head in amusement as she toweled herself dry. "We'll have to work on your washing skills."

Shizuru cleared her throat indignantly. "I think I did quite well, thank you very much."

Natsuki only smirked and looked at her slave expectantly again.

"What?" Shizuru asked.

"There is plenty of clean water left."

Now it was Shizuru's turn to arch an eyebrow. "...You want me to wash myself here, in your tent? Now?"

"I am not traveling with an unwashed slave." Natsuki's firm, commanding tone of voice was back.

Shizuru stared at her in discomfort, but Natsuki did not relent. Finally, the sandy-haired woman sighed in acquiescence. She might as well get this over with. Her lips twitched as a thought occurred to her.

"Natsuki is not going to bathe me?" Shizuru asked playfully.

The other woman scowled and crossed her arms over her chest.

_I suppose that's a "no"_, Shizuru thought._ Pity. _She stepped onto the reed rug and began stripping off her white linen sheath dress and undergarments, as well as the reed sandals and golden wrist and armbands Arika had brought her.

Natsuki, still wrapped in her towel, moved off toward the center of the tent, now seemingly unconcerned with her new slave again.

Shizuru continued undressing and was soon standing completely bare atop the rug.

"Lush" was the best word to describe her body, she'd been told. Lush and full, like a lotus in bloom above the Nile. Long legs met the curves of her hips and a thin veil of hair that was, oddly, a shade lighter than the hair atop her head, almost blonde. Higher up, soft, full breasts and a delicate throat seemed to beg attention, and there had been more than one woman in Shizuru's life who had been all too happy to oblige.

Shizuru was not as athletic as Natsuki, but she was hardly feeble. She, like other noble-born women of Fuuka, had been trained in the use of pole-weapons, though she had never used one anywhere but on a training floor.

As her usual attire as queen had consisted of a long-sleeved robe, her skin was paler than Natsuki's. Although, that was probably going to change now that she would be wearing a slave-girl's simple sheath dress and spending more time out in the sun.

Shizuru washed herself quickly. It was not out of modesty; the water had grown cold, and though Natsuki had not seemed to mind, Shizuru hated bathing in cold water. Her elegant, long-fingered hands hastily rubbed the cleansing cream onto her skin just as she had done for Natsuki, and then rinsed it off with fresh water from the golden basin.

As she grabbed the second woolen towel draped across the washstand, the back of Shizuru's neck prickled. She whipped her head around and met Natsuki's intent green eyes. They both jumped a little in surprise at each other. _How long was she watching?_

Before Shizuru could think what to say, Natsuki jerked her eyes away as if nothing had happened. It was difficult to tell from this angle, but Shizuru thought her cheeks might be red again.

Well, she was not the first woman to see Shizuru in nothing but her skin. But if Natsuki was interested in her in such a way, why blush and ignore her? Could such an outwardly cold Pharaoh really be shy at heart? Perhaps there was some other reason for it. It could simply be an attempt at revenge for Shizuru staring at her earlier.

She sighed inwardly and gave up on trying to understand Natsuki for now. _What I wouldn't give to get inside that pretty little head of yours._

Shizuru quickly toweled herself dry and put her undergarments back on, eager to be clothed again. Natsuki had already donned her own sleeping shift, and by the time Shizuru was dressed again, Natsuki had taken an ivory comb from one of the small red acacia boxes and was working it through her long dark hair.

Seeing Shizuru watching, she reached into the box and wordlessly tossed another comb to her. Shizuru smiled gratefully and ran the carved comb through her own damp tresses. She handed it back to Natsuki once she'd finished, and Natsuki tossed the two combs back into the box carelessly.

Just as Shizuru was wondering what she was supposed to do next, Natsuki said, "There should be some blankets and pillows you can use in that chest over there." She indicated one of the larger sycamore chests pushed against the canvas wall.

Shizuru would have blinked in surprise again, but by now she had had about all the surprises she could take for one day. Instead, she calmly asked, "I'm not sleeping in the tent with Arika-san and your other personal slaves?"

Natsuki's back stiffened. "I sometimes have a slave stay in my bedchamber in case I wake in the night and need something fetched for me. Plenty of nobles do the same." It was a perfectly reasonable explanation, but Natsuki said it hurriedly, almost defensively.

Scrutinizing her, Shizuru pointed out, "You seem very trusting of me, Natsuki... How do you know I will not murder you in your sleep? Take revenge for the destruction you've brought to my home?" Shizuru smiled slowly, showing as many teeth as she could. A sudden fierceness lit her blood-red eyes, and they glinted in the candlelight. "Not even a god is safe from a vengeful woman."

Natsuki seemed taken aback for a moment. "How do _you _expect to get out of this camp alive after killing its leader?" she retorted. "And even if you did get away, do you think the army wouldn't pursue you?"

Shizuru had no real answer for that. "I am not helpless. I would... would find some way to escape."

"You could have escaped today, before we met," Natsuki said. "You could have fled with your husband before my soldiers took the palace. Yet you did not. You stayed." She caught Shizuru's eyes and held them. "Why?" she demanded. By the sudden intensity in her eyes, it was a question the younger woman had been dying to ask all night.

"_Former_ husband," Shizuru corrected, "And with everything _you've_ done tonight, Natsuki, I hardly think I need to justify my actions to you."

Natsuki actually had the audacity to look confused for a moment, as if she did not understand what Shizuru meant. Eventually, she gave a nod and broke her gaze.

"Get some sleep now," Natsuki murmured. She rubbed the back of her neck tiredly. "That's a command. It's been a long day, and the next half week will be nothing but hard traveling, so you will need it."

Natsuki promptly took her own advice and made her way to her extravagant gold-framed bed, sliding under the linen sheets and decorative leopard pelt.

The sandy-haired woman did likewise, after retrieving some bedding from the chest as Natsuki had told her and placing it atop a soft-looking fox-fur rug across the tent from Pharaoh's bed. She had just settled herself comfortably into her makeshift bed when she heard the younger woman call out to her from the other side of the tent.

"...Shizuru?"

Shizuru froze in her blankets, her breath catching. "Yes, Natsuki?" Was Natsuki going to ask her to...

"Someone has to blow the lights out before we can sleep."

Shizuru sighed. Deeply. "I wouldn't happen to be acquainted with this someone, would I?"

Natsuki made a noise that might have been a laugh, but it was quickly muffled by what sounded like a pillow pressed over her mouth to quiet it.

Shizuru rose grumpily and slowly circled around the big tent, blowing out all the oil lamps and the beeswax candles – gently, so the candle wax would not sputter. Flame by flame, the tent lost its illumination until nothing remained but moonlight and a few winking stars peeking in through the round opening in one of the tent's peaks. Shizuru made her way back to her pile of blankets, careful to avoid bumping into anything in the near-blackness.

Late summer nights in Fuuka were not cold, but Shizuru bundled herself warmly back into the woolen blankets, as if they could protect her.

As she lay there in the strange, dark new surroundings, she tried to push all the confusion of the day away so she could take Natsuki's advice and get some sleep. But of course, trying to forget that her entire world had been shattered today and that her future was still unknown was not easy. Well, she was still alive, which was more than she had expected this afternoon. That was enough, for now.

Eventually, the quiet sound of breathing from the other side of the tent calmed Shizuru's troubled thoughts and lulled her to sleep.

* * *

With sleep came a dream.

Shizuru was alone, standing on a flat plain covered in dried brownish grass that stretched as far as she could see in every direction. High above it all, the burning sun beat down on the empty landscape.

_Where am I? How did I come here?_ Questions swirled hazily in her head, but as usual for dreams, there were no readily apparent answers, and her mind seemed unable to focus on the questions long enough to form any.

A warm breeze lifted Shizuru's hair and sent shivers through the ankle-high grass, but her gaze was drawn far up to the cloudless sky.

She had to shield her eyes against the fierce sun with a hand, but even so she could still make out the figure of a bird soaring up there. A falcon. It glided effortlessly on the wind, dark wings fully outstretched to catch the warm currents. The falcon circled regally over the plain, fitting for one of the royal symbols of Egypt's Pharaoh.

_Egypt... Pharaoh..._

That tickled something in Shizuru's dream-fogged mind. But before she could remember what, a thin dark blur suddenly shot up from the ground a ways from Shizuru, streaking straight up to the circling bird. The arrow took the falcon in its left wing, and it loosed a piercing cry of agony that continued as it tumbled down through the sky to earth.

Shizuru did not see whether the bird struck the ground or not, because from there her dream dissolved into a confusing, hellish maelstrom.

The sun vanished from the sky, taking almost all light with it, and the warm breeze became a shrieking gale that cut at her flesh. The empty plain was replaced by a field of fallen corpses... rotting, decayed corpses whose stench made her gag with each panicked breath. Over the howl of the wind she could hear Reito's voice laughing maniacally and shouting that he was coming for her. She tried to flee, but she could barely see in the weak light and kept tripping over the rotting bodies, and his unseen voice grew closer by the second.

Shizuru stumbled through the chaos, groping for some escape from this nightmare. Blood suddenly spurted onto her frantically groping hands, thick crimson streams of it that glistened wetly even in the near-darkness, but whose blood it was she did not know.

She fell backwards with a cry, and the last thing she saw was a huge, green-eyed cobra with glittering golden scales that wrapped itself around her throat and choked the life out of her.

She clawed at the creature around her neck with a strangled yell, and suddenly realized that she was awake and thrashing in her blankets in the tent she had fallen asleep in.

The almost-full moon had long since set. A few stars flickered weakly through the opening in the peak, but the tent was still too dark for Shizuru to even see her trembling hands as she ran them over her sweaty face. Jarringly, she could still smell a sweet residue of honey on her fingers from earlier.

Her whole body was quivering. Gods, she could not stop shaking.

The irrational panic of the chaotic nightmare had put a final crack in the dam she had built up around her emotions. The crack splintered and spider-webbed, and before she could regain control of herself the dam burst, flooding her with everything she'd pent up today. Shizuru had thought she'd already overcome it, but... the the fear she had felt at the thought of being killed or raped, the fear she _still_ felt knowing those remained future possibilities… It all came crashing down on her like stone columns shattered by a mighty earthquake.

Her face crumpled in anguish and her whole body was wracked with loud sobs. Tears began streaming down her cheeks, and she covered her mouth with a trembling hand as she wept alone in the darkness.

She suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her.

She shrieked and tried to beat the arms away before she realized who they must belong to. In her panic and disorientation, she had forgotten she was not alone in the tent.

Unseen hands came out of the darkness and gripped her quivering shoulders, pulling her close to a warm body covered in soft linen and smooth skin. Shizuru clung to that warmth like it was the only solid thing left in the world.

The other person tucked Shizuru's head under their chin and spoke into her soft sandy hair, too quietly for Shizuru to make out what was said, but the murmuring had a soothing rhythm to it. A prayer, perhaps, to ward off the demons of the nightmare.

She did not know how long the two of them stayed like that, tangled in her tousled blankets in the huge tent that held only a tiny scrap of light, with her sobbing wordlessly and clinging to the comfort she could not see.

As the minutes dragged by, her shaking stilled and her breathing calmed. Thoroughly worn out, Shizuru fell back into an uneasy sleep, this time without dreaming.

* * *

When Shizuru next woke, the sun had embraced the world again. Bright morning light poured into the tent from the gap in its peak, glinting off all the polished furniture and Pharaoh's gold-plated scale armor on its stand in the corner.

Pharaoh herself was still in her own bed across the tent, facing away from the other woman so that all Shizuru could see of her was the top of a bare shoulder and strands of long dark hair trailing over the pillows. The soft sound of her breathing still came in the slow rhythm of sleep. There was no way to tell if she had actually stirred during the night and come to Shizuru's side.

_Perhaps it was just another dream._

* * *

AN: Next chapter will cover the trip back to Egypt, finally. Can you believe when I originally started planning this fic I thought chapters 2, 3, and 4 would all fit into one chapter? Yeah, really. It wasn't until I started writing them out that I realized how long-winded I've become.


	5. Horse With No Name

Thank you, thank you all for your continued support. I've kept you waiting long enough, so I won't delay any longer with Author's Notes.

This fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

* * *

The Egyptian camp was abuzz with activity, like a kicked anthill. Hundreds of soldiers, mercenaries, laborers, servants, and slaves all scurried back and forth in the bright morning light, many of them already sweating in the heat of the summer sun.

It all seemed chaotic at first, but as Shizuru watched, she realized that each one of those people moved with purpose about his or her task as the army readied for departure. The laborers and slaves were busy taking down tents and packing them and all the camp's other equipment onto countless supply carts. The personal slaves and servants of the noble-born officers darted about, making sure their masters' possessions were all carefully loaded up and their horses and chariots prepared.

Among the soldiers, the charioteers were readying themselves to accompany Pharaoh on her five-day journey back to Egypt's capital. Most of the footsoldiers, archers, and mercenaries were making their way into the captured city of Fuuka, where they would remain under General Haruka's command, to stabilize Egypt's hold on their new conquest.

None of the people spared Shizuru a glance as they worked. Some had stared curiously as she rode into the camp last night at their ruler's side, but they had either forgotten or did not recognize her in her new outfit and makeup. She was just another slave to their eyes now, and the camp had hundreds of those.

They stopped to look at Pharaoh, though. She stood before a narrow table covered in papers and reports, and clustered opposite her were Haruka and the other top commanders in the camp. Those men and women might intimidate others easily with their power and status, but they all gave meek little bows whenever the Living God so much as looked at them, and listened attentively as she gave her final orders before leaving. A knot of scribes lurked around behind the commanders, all of them scribbling hastily onto sheets of papyrus as Natsuki spoke.

She wore a lighter set of armor today, now that there were no more battles to be fought here. Broad strips of thick gold-trimmed leather criss-crossed her chest tightly, and another of those pleated white _shenti_s wound around her hips and thighs. Crowning her head was a striped blue and gold cloth that covered her scalp and nape and fell loosely down the sides of her head to brush against her shoulders. It evoked the image of a lion's mane, or a cobra's hood, Shizuru had thought as she and Arika dressed Natsuki that morning.

Despite their rush, the slaves and soldiers made time to bow and salute as they passed near Pharaoh's table, and Natsuki gave a regal nod of acknowledgment to each of them without pausing in her orders to the officers. Well, if she expected Shizuru to bow all over the place, Natsuki was going to be sorely disappointed.

Shizuru stood off to one side, too far to hear what was being said, but close enough that Natsuki could call for her if needed.

Behind her, a team of slaves were pulling down Pharaoh's massive tent and packing it up. They somehow managed to compress the ridiculously huge canvas and tall tent poles until it all fit onto one cart. Shizuru thought the poor donkey pulling it must be groaning in dismay.

She had been unsure what to do, wondering if she should help the other slaves with the packing, but Natsuki told her that personal attendants did not have to bother with such things. That left her with nothing to do but wait and watch until Natsuki thought of some use for her.

She shifted uneasily. The two of them had not exchanged much conversation this morning. Not that they had had much time to, with all this activity. And besides, Shizuru did not quite know what to say to her after last night.

She had to resist the urge to rub irritatedly at her kohl-darkened eyelids and eyebrows as she watched her strange new "mistress". Such makeup did look nice on Natsuki, but Shizuru had not wanted to wear any herself. But...

_Natsuki, her back straight and hands resting on her knees, sat patiently on one of the boxlike stools in a corner of her tent . Shizuru watched while the dark-haired woman's makeup was applied by another of her personal slaves, an older woman who wielded the little applicator stick with a dexterity that spoke of years of experience._

_Around them, bare-chested slave men in linen _shenti_s were carrying out the tent's chests and arks, rolled rugs and furs, the gilded throne, the bed, and the cedar table she and Natsuki shared a meal over last night. Natsuki paid the men no mind as they worked. They were simply slaves going about their duties, unremarkable._

_At her side, Arika held a polished silver hand-mirror up for Natsuki to examine herself once the older slave finished. The older woman offered powdered ochre to color Natsuki's lips and cheeks as well, but Natsuki declined and waved the woman away. But before she could put away her little applicators and palettes, Natsuki gestured to her newer slave._

"_You too, Shizuru."_

_Gods, would she always feel that tremor along her spine upon hearing Natsuki say her name in that low voice of hers?_

_Shizuru hesitated. Arika nodded at her in encouragement. "It'll help with the sun's glare," the girl said. She had already applied her own kohl before arriving, and the black coloring seemed to make her big blue eyes all the more vivid._

_Shizuru did not see how the makeup would help, but she acquiesced and allowed the older slave to apply the powder to her eyelids and eyebrows as she had for Natsuki. The woman was quick; within a few minutes Shizuru was examining her reflection in the smooth silver surface Arika held up for her._

_Shizuru looked into the mirror, then down at herself. The white linen sheath dress, the reed sandals, the snake-shaped golden arm and wristbands, and now the dark makeup. She truly looked Egyptian now. All that was missing was an..._

"Shizuru-san!"

She blinked back to the present as Arika trotted up to her.

The slaves had finished packing Natsuki's things, and Natsuki herself seemed to have finished giving out orders. The scribes were still copying furiously and passing papers among themselves for delivery to the rest of the officers, but General Haruka and the others were making their farewell bows to Natsuki while another pair of slaves lifted the now cleared table and carried it off. Haruka was saying something emphatic to Natsuki as she left; at first Shizuru thought Haruka must be trying to swat at a fly buzzing 'round her head, but it seemed the bumptious blonde simply liked wild gestures.

"Forgive me, Arika-san, I was lost in thought. Is it time for us to depart already?"

"Soon," Arika said, "But first I brought you something."

She pressed something into Shizuru's hands shyly. "Every Egyptian needs an amulet for protection, even a slave. I noticed yesterday that you didn't have one, so I thought you could keep my old amulet. I said all the proper prayers over it last night, so I hope it'll protect you well. Do you like it?"

Shizuru slowly turned the amulet over in her hands. It was a simple thing, about the size of her palm, carved from cheap soapstone in the shape of the protective Eye symbol. Plain beads and colored clay adorned it, the decorations of those too poor to afford gems and other rare materials. It had been crafted with care, however, its maker plainly determined to make the best of what was available. Shizuru had never owned something so plebeian in her entire life.

When Shizuru kept staring silently at the amulet, Arika tugged nervously on one of her auburn braids. "If you don't like it, I can-"

"No," Shizuru whispered. Her fingers tightened around it. "No, it's... it's the most thoughtful gift anyone has ever given me."

Her parents and Reito had lavished expensive jewelry and fine clothes on her, but only to ensure Shizuru was properly "decorated" for them to show off as a pretty ornament to stand by their side. None of those things had shown the same amount of caring for her as this poor amulet from a young friend she had only just met. Shizuru was surprised to feel her eyes moistening. It must be the kohl making them itch.

She met those blue eyes again and smiled. "Thank you, Arika-san." When Arika grinned back, Shizuru could not help wrapping the much shorter girl in a warm hug.

Shizuru pulled back when a thought occurred to her. "But what will you wear if you give me this?"

"This..." Arika tugged her own amulet out of her dress and touched it fondly, sadly. "This was Grandma's amulet. Most people are buried with their amulets, but she insisted I keep it for my own protection rather than hers."

Shizuru laid a hand on her friend's shoulder and gripped her gently. "She... she always took care of me," Arika continued. She seemed warmed by Shizuru's attempt at comfort. "Ever since my parents died. But her spirit passed on before I came into Natsuki-sama's service."

Shizuru blinked in surprise. "Before?" she repeated. "You were not born a slave?"

"No, I -"

Shizuru wanted to hear what she had to say, but Arika stopped when she saw that Natsuki was making her way towards them.

One of her personal guards, a black-haired girl Shizuru remembered from last night as Mikoto, ambled up to Natsuki, obviously expecting to drive her chariot for her as she usually did. Natsuki shook her head gently at the her and leaned in to tell her something. Whatever she said, it put a confused look on Mikoto's face, and the girl stared in bewilderment past her ruler toward where Shizuru and Arika were standing.

"Looks like Natsuki-sama is about ready to go," Arika noted. "We'd better head to the cart."

"Cart?"

"Most slaves have to walk like the footsoldiers, but Natsuki-sama lets her personal attendants ride one of the supply carts. You can sit next to me, Shizuru-san."

"That will not be necessary," Natsuki said, walking up to them. "Shizuru has work to do for me today."

She carried a thin pole, taller than she was, with broad white feathers spreading across its top in a frond-like fan three feet wide. Behind her, Shizuru could see Natsuki's chariot being readied. The buzzing anthill had calmed somewhat, and most of the people were plainly ready to begin their departure.

Green eyes flickered down to the sandy-haired woman's hands and the amulet she still held. "What is that?"

"Oh, this?" Shizuru put the amulet on happily. Its leather cord was just long enough that the amulet rested above the tops of her breasts, exposed by her sheath dress. "Arika-san gave it to me for protection."

Noticing the look in Natsuki's eyes, Shizuru smiled slyly. "She's such a sweet girl, is she not? And cute too. Very cute." She draped an arm over the younger slave's shoulders in a half-hug as she spoke. The girl blinked up at Shizuru, oblivious.

Natsuki's mouth hardened. "Arika, time for you to go to the cart. You don't want to be left behind."

The girl nodded vigorously and gave Shizuru a friendly goodbye before hurrying off as if she thought they really would leave her behind.

Natsuki tossed Shizuru the pole-fan she had been carrying. "You'll be riding at my side today, to keep the sun off me. I hope you appreciate what an honor that is for a slave."

"Oh, I am_ overwhelmed _by your generosity, Great Pharaoh," Shizuru said dryly, hefting the fan. "Am I expected to perform the honor of driving the chariot as well?"

Natsuki smirked at her. "Of course not. You can barely manage not to fall off the back of a chariot, much less drive one."

Shizuru's lips pursed at the reminder of her near-spill last night when she and Natsuki first left the city. She might have simply accepted the jab as payback for her own sarcasm, but that incredibly _smug_ smirk Natsuki was wearing... Shizuru's hand itched to slap it off her beautiful, arrogant face.

One of the other slaves walked the two horses harnessed to Pharaoh's chariot over, and held them steady while the women climbed in. Natsuki was still smirking.

Shizuru forced Natsuki to lift her up onto the chariot's sycamore foot-board instead of stepping up herself, just to make her new mistress's life a little more difficult.

The dark-haired woman flicked the reins once Shizuru was settled, and with a creak of leather harnesses and rumble of bronze-shod wheels, the two of them were off.

Shizuru could not stop a pang of loss – and uncertainty about the future – as they left her home forever to begin the journey to Natsuki's.

* * *

Natsuki let the warm breeze caress her face. Her crown prevented the wind from lifting her dark hair, but she still enjoyed the feel of it against her face and bare arms. The day had heated up as morning wore into afternoon, and Natsuki was glad for the shade provided by the fan of white feathers.

Two mares pulled her war chariot today, both resplendent in deep blue blankets and feathered headdresses that put her crown to shame. One was a white horse, the other a dull gray. Though her coat was dull, the second mare had a feisty spring in her step compared to her more placid companion, and she frisked as if thinking of causing some trouble.

Pharaoh always rode at the front of the army with the rest of the chariotry, so the drumbeats that kept pace for the footsoldiers were only a vague rataplan behind her. The rumble of wheels and tread of hooves and feet filled the empty air.

From time to time one of Natsuki's officers pulled their chariot up alongside hers to confer with her for a few moments, but Natsuki always dismissed them once she finished. She wanted some privacy. Well, as much privacy as she could have when surrounded by thousands of her subjects.

The long column of soldiers and workers rumbled and pounded its way slowly over the flat, empty terrain. No need to worry about a surprise attack here. Brownish yellow clay stretched for miles in every direction, dotted with the occasional brush or shrub or stunted tree. Sometimes they saw a tiny village or some farmland off in the distance, but there was no need to veer the army closer to them. They had already conquered the area, and she had made arrangements for holding onto it, so there was no need for detours on their journey back to Egypt.

Natsuki did her best to focus on the landscape and not stare at the very distracting woman sharing the chariot with her. Unfortunately, the fan was not wide enough to shade both of them. Not unless Shizuru pressed up against Natsuki's side, and that certainly would not have been proper behavior for a slave, especially in public.

A piercing call pulled her attention upwards. A dark-winged falcon soared on the breeze high over the army, circling as it hunted.

Natsuki glanced to her side; Shizuru had noticed the falcon too. For some reason, the other woman shivered at the sight of it. Shivered? In the middle of a hot day? Something must have unnerved her, though Natsuki had no idea what. The bird circled them once more before flying off to continue its hunt elsewhere. The army no doubt would have scared away any prey within a mile.

Shizuru had remained silent the first few hours – sulking over Natsuki's jab at her this morning, she supposed – so it was a surprise when she suddenly spoke up.

"This heat is unbearable. I feel as if the sun is slowly roasting me like a slab of mutton."

Even when complaining, that canorous voice still managed to caress Natsuki's ears like a lover's warm breath.

She resisted the urge to shake her head. Did Shizuru even know what she sounded like? Did she do it on purpose? The woman somehow irritated and enchanted Natsuki, both at once. And those _eyes_... There were even more striking now, rimmed and accented with a stark black that seemed to make the blood-red irises gleam. Stare into their depths too long, Natsuki feared, and she would be hypnotized like a mouse before a serpent.

The simple dress of a slave looked somehow _more_ on Shizuru. She wore the outfit as regally as she had worn her embroidered robe and royal coronet. Natsuki recalled how the queen had looked when she first laid eyes upon her. Even forced to her knees, her back was straight, her head high, a look of utmost calm on her face. Calm! While her city was conquered around her, everything she knew taken from her, and no idea whether she would survive the day, she walked to her possible death as if not even execution could rob her of her tranquility. Natsuki wished she could know what went through Shizuru's head.

_In her place I would've been shrieking like a baboon_, she thought.

"Everyone else is bearing it just fine," she replied to Shizuru's complaint. It seemed best not to mention the confusing jumble of thoughts that stirred up her mind whenever she looked at her new slave.

"Some of us are better protected than others," Shizuru said wryly. She nodded at Natsuki's crown. "Perhaps I could find a nice headdress like that to keep the sun off my head."

Natsuki rolled her eyes upward. She could just barely see the small golden vulture and rearing cobra set right above her forehead, the ones present on most of Pharaoh's crowns as symbols of kingship over Upper and Lower Egypt.

"The Nemes crown was worn by Horus, the first true Pharaoh and the god whose spirit resides in each and every Pharaoh since," Natsuki said solemnly, looking back down to focus on the road ahead. Not on the woman at her side. "The lion goddess bequeathed it to him on his quest to avenge his murdered father, that the gods on the western horizon and in the Underworld would see it and grant him passage."

The high priests lectured royal children extensively on the divine history of their rule, but Natsuki had to admit she only remembered parts of the legends and stories. She had always been more interested in archery and hunting with her father – she felt a pang of grief at the thought of him – than in listening to bald priests drone on. Even practicing swordplay with Tomoe was preferable to that, though Natsuki did lose to her every time.

"How thoughtful of her," Shizuru murmured.

_That wasn't more sarcasm, was it? _Natsuki wondered. Shizuru seemed to enjoy mocking her. _I ought to have her flogged._ It was not the first time that thought occurred to her, but for reasons she could not understand, she knew she would not go through with it.

Shizuru twirled the pole of the fan in her long fingers. After a moment, she asked cautiously, "Do you really believe all that? Everything said of you by the priests... That you have the soul of a god and your religious leadership is the only thing keeping Egypt from falling into anarchy and chaos?"

Natsuki paused, considering. No one had ever asked her such a question. It was beyond impertinent, but for some reason she wanted to answer it. _Did_ she really believe that? Had her father, Pharaoh before her, believed it?

_Natsuki stood with her father, looking at the canvas map spread across a table in one of Pharaoh's rooms in the royal palace. Oil lamps filled the room with a soft light and the scent of castor oil, and the song of cicadas drifted in from the balcony and the courtyard garden below._

_She stared up at her father beside her. Her twelve-year-old head only reached the middle of his chest. He was tall, with broad shoulders and an aquiline nose. And the kind of face meant to be carved into colossal statues and painted onto temple walls. His golden hair he had passed to his youngest daughter, but like many nobles he chose to shave his head and wear a decorative black wig in public instead._

_A Pharaoh had many royal names to go along with their many titles, and when it came time for Natsuki to choose one of her new additional names upon her coronation, there was no doubt in her mind whose name she wanted. Kanakht – the strong bull. To her, he had always seemed to fit his name._

_No matter how full his days were with the official business of ruling his empire, he always set aside time every night for Natsuki. Training and teaching his firstborn the skills and knowledge she would need to succeed him as his heir, he said, though she learned those things most of the day, too. But she cherished any amount of time spent with him._

_He gestured to the map of Egypt as he instructed her. The Nile, Egypt's life-vein, flowed north for almost a thousand miles from the impassable southern cataracts, the river shaped like a long stalk of papyrus whose crest fanned out to create the marshlands of the Delta before eventually spilling into the Mediterranean._

"_The gods built our land to be protected," he told her, pointing out features drawn on the canvas, "With deserts to the east and west, cataracts to the south, and the sea to the north. Our only weaknesses come from within. A tree that is diseased stoops under its own weight and is uprooted by the first stormwinds."_

_Kanakht caught and held his daughter's gaze with his sharp blue eyes, staring intently to be sure she was paying attention._

"_Listen to me, Natsuki. There have been times in the past when lords and generals and Viziers rebelled against a weak Pharaoh who could not keep them under control, and Egypt herself suffered because of their transgressions against the gods' order. Her people starved, warred against each other, or were overrun by foreign invaders."_

_He scrubbed a calloused hand across his shaven head wearily, as if he could feel the pain of his people from all those centuries ago._

"_Pharaoh must bring stability and justice to the people, Natsuki, to prove to the gods that we are worthy of their continued protection. It is Pharaoh's leadership, and the people's faith in Pharaoh's leadership, that binds Egypt together and makes her strong. Egypt cannot defend herself against the wicked and the corrupt, cannot repel invaders who would enslave us, not without that leadership. That is what it means to be a Living God, upholder of the divine order."_

Natsuki's throat felt dry, and painfully tight. It had been years before she fully understood what her father taught her, but now she thanked him daily in her prayers for his teachings. She also prayed that she would live up to his legacy, would protect Egypt and its people as well as he had before he was taken from this world, only two months ago now.

It was a few more moments before the grief dulled enough to allow her to speak in answer to Shizuru's question.

"When I was seventeen, my father took me with him to the Canaan region to put down a rebellion." She shook her head disgustedly at the memories of what she had seen there.

"The world outside Egypt is chaos, nothing but ravenous lions and tusked river behemoths. The foreigners I saw there are barbarians, slaves to vicious gods, slaughtering each other for tiny plots of arable land or for no other reason than wickedness. Egypt has brought their land order and justice and prosperity, yet some of them still rebel from time to time in attempts to grab more power for themselves. So, yes, I do believe Egypt would fall into the same chaos without a Pharaoh's rule. There are even those who say that Pharaoh _is_ Egypt, though I would not go so far myself."

"I see..." That was all the response Natsuki got from Shizuru.

The feisty gray mare nipped at her white companion, who snorted at her in irritation. Natsuki settled them both with a swat of the reins, and they plodded on obediently.

The feathered fan absently tilted to the side as Shizuru lost herself in thought again and forgot she was supposed to he holding it up for Natsuki.

_Back to silence again?_ Natsuki thought sadly. This woman... Playful and mischievous as a kitten one minute, the next as withdrawn as a groundsnake hiding in a stolen burrow. What would it take to make her smile and open herself up again? Another childhood memory drifted up, a saying from an old papyrus. "_One can never discover the heart of a woman any more than one can discover the sky."_ Why she should want to discover Shizuru's heart was a more disturbing question.

"Thank you," the other woman said quietly.

Natsuki stared at her.

"For last night."

Natsuki's throat tightened again, and she could only nod in reply. Shizuru gave her a smile. It was small, and still a little unsure, but it was there. _I could get used to those smiles._

"...Shizuru?"

"Yes, Natsuki?"

"The fan."

Shizuru blinked those terrifying, beautiful eyes at her for a moment, then repositioned the fan so it shaded Natsuki again.

She was reminded that the fan was not wide enough for both of them. With that exquisite pale skin unused to such exposure, Shizuru would have a bad sunburn before long. And it was only the first day of their journey. _Why should I care? Lots of people get sunburns. _It would not be proper for Natsuki to help her in public.

Natsuki grumbled under her breath. She was not sure who she was more frustrated with, herself or the strange, bewitching woman she had brought into her life.

She reached over, wrapping an arm around Shizuru's waist and jerking her nearer to close the space between them and pull her against the dark-haired woman's side.

Shizuru's eyes widened at the abrupt motion. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but mercifully changed her mind and closed it again, sparing Natsuki from having to explain herself.

_Why should I feel the need to explain myself to a slave? _She withdrew her hand from Shizuru's side, too wrapped up in her troubled thoughts to notice the other woman's expression at the loss of contact.

Neither of them spoke further as the chariot rumbled on, both its passengers now shaded beneath the fan of white feathers.

* * *

Shizuru stood at Natsuki's side at they looked out at one of Fuuka's smaller cities in the gloaming. The army had paused a few miles from the walls of the first real city they had seen since leaving Fuuka's capital, two days ago now.

Natsuki's chariot was surrounded by the army's highest-ranking officers and nobles, who had gathered to find out Pharaoh's plans for their nightly encampment.

They all wore armor, some in bronze scale-mail tunics, others in bronze-studded leather, many more decorative than practical. Nobles always served in the chariotry, but their charioteers' recurve bows were packed away in the big quivers on the sides of their chariot boxes. Instead, they carried sickle-swords or axes at their belts. The men and women wore kohl on their eyelids and eyebrows, not to mention all their golden and be-gemmed amulets, armbands, rings, and ear studs. Shizuru had worn similar finery herself only a few days ago. It surprised her a little to realize she did not miss it at all.

"Shall I send messengers to the commander of the city to tell him we will be staying here tonight, Majesty?" one of the higher officers asked. Shizuru thought she recognized the blond man from that first night – Sergei.

Messengers had already been sent ahead to Egypt the night before Natsuki left Fuuka's capital. Messengers could move faster than the entire army with all its footsoldiers, workers, and carts, so they would probably reach Waset with news of the victory at least a day before the army did.

"No," Natsuki ordered, "We will camp here tonight, not in the city. But, no doubt they have already seen us, so send some charioteers in anyway to reaffirm our commander's hold on the captured city and surrounding territory. If he needs reinforcements, I will leave a few companies of footsoldiers here."

Her voice was deep and sure, full of command. A suitable tone for a Pharaoh giving orders, but Shizuru was glad Natsuki was more herself when they were alone together.

"And send scouts to check the route ahead of us, just in case. I want no unpleasant surprises waiting for us the next few days before we reach Egypt."

One of the officers, a noblewoman in a ridiculously showy bronze tunic with expensive gems at her earlobes and on every finger, scoffed a little. "Surely, Great Majesty, you don't expect an attack _here_? The people of Fuuka are completely broken by Egypt's might. They probably could not scrounge up enough soldiers to fight off a pack of hyenas, much less drive their conquerors out."

As if quoting some saying, Natsuki replied, "Even the mightiest can be brought down by something as small as a scorpion's sting if they don't bother to check their bed for the creatures before they lie down." She turned her head to capture's the officer's eyes. "And if there _is_ an ambush," the dark-haired woman added in her own words, "I will make sure that those very words you just said are inscribed on the walls of your tomb."

The noblewoman's face went white and she bowed hurriedly. "Of course, Great Majesty," she nearly squeaked, stumbling over her words in her haste to agree with Natsuki. "Of course. I will see to the scouts personally. Immediately." She hissed something frantic in her driver's ear, and he pulled their chariot around and flogged at the horses until they galloped off.

The rest of the officers made their bows from their chariots and drove off to see to the other orders Pharaoh had given, their spear-carrying chariot runners jogging after them. Only Natsuki's personal guards remained, and they were far enough back that that the two women could talk without being overheard.

"Really," Natsuki grumbled once all were gone, "Most of them are sensible, but I won't let any of my soldiers die because of some idiot's arrogance."

Shizuru refrained from telling Natsuki that if she wanted to see arrogance, she should call Arika back with that silver hand-mirror.

Instead, Shizuru pouted. She had been hoping for a change from the tent they had spent the last three night in. "We could have had real baths tonight, in a proper tub, instead of washing standing up in cold water," she complained. "Are you really so afraid for your safety that you will not rest the night in the city? I cannot say it makes me happy to admit, but that woman was right. The people of Fuuka are no threat to you anymore."

Natsuki regarded her for a long moment. Eventually, she said slowly, "It's not my safety I fear for."

Shizuru arched a questioning eyebrow.

"Fuuka is part of the Egyptian empire now," Natsuki explained. "These are my people to protect. If the army camps inside the city, we'll have to disperse somewhat, and some soldiers may get out of control if a close eye isn't kept on them. I won't allow the possibility of any of my men harassing the local women or looting more."

Shizuru spluttered in outrage. _Now_ Natsuki wanted to play the kind ruler? "And what of all the men and women you and your army took as slaves, who had all of their possessions looted, their homes and livelihoods burned to ash?" she demanded. Not to mentioned those who had been raped or killed outright.

"When we first came through here, these were our enemies, the people who tried to invade our land," Natsuki said defensively. Had Shizuru really upset Natsuki so much by her outburst that she felt the need to defend her actions to her slave? "It was only proper that we should take of them what we will. But they are my responsibility now. I won't let any further harm come to them."

"I'm sure the mothers weeping over their dead and defiled children would find your consideration comforting," Shizuru said bitterly.

Part of her wanted to admire Natsuki, but she could not excuse the damage brought to the victims of this conquest, the people she had briefly ruled over as Queen. They had been her responsibility – well, Reito's really, but he had rarely spared a thought for happenings outside his palace – before they were Natsuki's, and she could not help but feel for them.

"What would you rather I had done instead?" Natsuki asked quietly. "Let Fuuka's troops invade Egypt and take what they want? They would have looted and enslaved my people too. And a weak ruler doesn't rule for long – as your former husband learned. I cannot protect everyone, but I cannot protect _anyone_ if I am killed for my weakness and my throne stolen by a usurper."

Shizuru stared out at the city walls in the twilight, at a jagged gap in the stone where the invaders had broken through. One of the horses snorted and stomped a hoof in the silence.

"...You did what you had to do," she admitted after a pause. Her anger was cooling. Natsuki _had_ done the best she could, what any ruler had to do. "But I do not have to like it," she added.

That apparently did not satisfy Natsuki, for she gripped the older woman's shoulders and twisted her to face her. "I will do my best to have Fuuka rebuilt, I promise you," Natsuki said with a growl, holding her red eyes intently, "Its people will prosper under Egypt's rule. Their lives will be better than they were under the Obsidian Lord's thumb. I promise you, Shizuru."

Shizuru stared into those clear emeralds. "I believe you," she said finally, "But it's not me you need to prove yourself to, it's them."

Natsuki removed her hands. "Duly noted." She offered Shizuru a shaky smile. "Thank you."

She returned the smile. Smirks were common from her, but something about Natsuki's rare smiles always buoyed her mood. "Now, shall we go watch your army set up camp? I have a bet with Arika-san that that big, silly tent of yours will fall around our heads one night."

Natsuki laughed and picked up the reins. "What did you bet? You don't own anything."

"If I win, she has to take over pole-fan duties for the rest of the trip."

Natsuki rolled her eyes. Guards following some distance behind them, the two women cantered back to camp, chuckling together.

* * *

"We've got to do something about your legs," Natsuki said.

Shizuru looked over at her in the lambent light of the beeswax candles and oil lamps within the tent.

Natsuki, already in her linen sleeping shift, was running an ivory comb through her still-wet hair as she idly watched Shizuru wash with the leftover water. The two of them were alone; Shizuru had already undressed Natsuki and washed the dust of the day from her body.

It had become something of a nightly ritual for them – Shizuru would bathe Natsuki and do her best to keep her eyes to herself, then Natsuki would watch Shizuru bathe herself while the red-eyed woman silently dared her to look away. A ritual, or a game to see which of them cracked first and embarrassed herself.

It was the fourth day of their journey. The days had passed without variety, and Shizuru was almost looking forward to an end to the boredom of standing in a chariot all day holding a fan, watching the same yellowed landscapes pass them by.

The army had only reached the outskirts of Egypt this morning, crossing over the former border with Fuuka. In fact, their current camp was not far from the two Egyptian gold mines Reito had tried to invade about a month ago, thereby igniting this whole mess. Shizuru was starting to wonder if "this whole mess" had actually improved her life. A crazy thought.

The remains of their evening meal lay on the big cedar table. There had been no more of the rich beef stew they ate that first night. Stew took hours to, well, _stew_, and the cooks had no time for that while traveling. The past few days she and Natsuki ate breakfasts of cheese and unleavened bread in the chariot and evening meals of dried meat or salted fish in the tent.

The cooks ensured that Pharaoh's food was always high quality, of course, and seasoned with imported spices or sweetened with honey. There were some fresh fruits and vegetables available, but the cooks' supply of them was diminishing, so they had to make do with dried fruit. But their supply of the porridge-like beer eaten with every meal never seemed to dwindle. Apparently, the cooks had their priorities straight.

Servants continued to deliver two servings of food to Pharaoh's tent each night, though they had no idea she was dining with her new slave. Shizuru would not be surprised if there was some gossip floating around, however. She did not care if people talked, she for one was grateful – still baffled, but grateful – that Natsuki wanted her company at meals.

Shizuru had asked Arika, and the girl confirmed that Natsuki had never done such a thing with any other slave. The younger brunette was also surprised by the whole affair, but Shizuru was relieved not to hear any hint of envy in Arika's voice. A master favoring one slave over others could lead to jealousy and rivalries among them, and Shizuru had no wish to antagonize her newfound friend.

In public, or when any slave other than Arika was present, Natsuki was properly regal and distant towards Shizuru, as she was with her other slaves. It was only when they were together in her chariot or tent that Natsuki's oddly friendly side emerged.

On the second night of this confusing behavior, it occurred to Shizuru that Natsuki might be trying to protect her from any such conflict with the other slaves over her preferential treatment by ignoring her in public. And to protect Natsuki's own image too, of course. But all her personal attendants were well disciplined, so there was little chance of _them_ gossiping among the camp about Pharaoh's unusual behavior.

Public formality did not stop Natsuki's occasional odd comments in private, however. Such as the one she had just made.

"And what is wrong with my legs, if I may ask?" Shizuru replied to what Natsuki had said.

"You do not keep them in the Egyptian style, as our nobles do, and have been doing for centuries. We're in Egypt now, and royal slaves are expected to keep themselves well groomed. Arika does mine for me; I'll call her here now to do yours." From the firmness of her tone, it was not a suggestion. She was ordering Shizuru, plain and simple, and Shizuru was reluctant to disobey her directly. Not yet anyway.

She hesitated, looking down at her legs and back up at Natsuki. "Does it hurt very much?" she asked with a touch of nervousness.

Natsuki smiled innocently at her. "Not at all!"

Ten minutes later, Shizuru was shrieking her head off.

Arika winced every time she ripped a linen strip off Shizuru, either in sympathy for her friend's pain or because her shrieks grated at the poor girl's ears.

The older woman was lying on her back, propped up on her elbows, legs stretched out in front of her, wrapped in a woolen towel after her wash. Arika had applied the warm, sticky paste of mixed honey, water, and some sort of citrus juice to her legs, and then gently pressed thin strips of linen over them until Shizuru was covered from ankle to groin.

Everything had been fine until the girl starting tearing the strips off, one agonizing piece at a time. Shizuru tried to grit her teeth and conduct herself like the noblewoman she had been raised as, but _gods_ it stung!

The evil demon-woman who had brought this ordeal upon Shizuru stood off to one side, watching with arms folded over her chest. That smirk was back, more smug than ever. _That damn woman is lucky she is not within slapping range_, Shizuru thought sourly.

Natsuki shook her head wryly at her new slave. "Don't be such a child, Shizuru. I thought you tougher than this." The tilt of her head suggested she was joking, but Shizuru still glared at her.

Natsuki apparently decided to have mercy on her, and began talking in an attempt to distract Shizuru from the pain.

"Tomorrow we'll reach the river tributary," she said, "Scouts will have already reached the port there, so there will be ships ready to carry us north, down the Nile, the rest of the way to the capital. We should be in Waset proper by mid-afternoon."

Every sentence was punctuated with another loud shriek from Shizuru as Arika expertly tore the linen off.

Natsuki went on, "The first messengers likely arrived at the capital this morning, so the whole city will be eagerly awaiting the army's triumphant return. Mai has probably already organized a parade or a feast."

Shizuru felt a twinge in her chest that had nothing to do with the other pain she was currently suffering. Tomorrow she would meet, or at least see, Natsuki's wife. Both of her wives. Why should that make her so anxious? The question was enough to make her forget the stinging. For a moment, at least.

What felt like a month later, Arika finally finished her torture. Natsuki dismissed her for the night, and the girl quickly gathered up her things and scurried from the tent, looking glad to be gone. Shizuru resolved to apologize to her tomorrow; it was not Arika's fault she had caused Shizuru pain.

Once the tent flap dropped closed behind her, Natsuki strode over to her gold-framed bed and slid under the decorative leopard-pelt, tossing one last smirk over her shoulder at the older woman."Goodnight, Shizuru."

Shizuru grumpily ignored her. She blew out the candles and oil lamps once the dark-haired woman was abed, as she had the last four nights, and made her way to her usual pile of bedding atop the fox-fur rug.

She made sure to shake out her blankets thoroughly before lying down. Natsuki had unnerved her a little the other day with that saying about scorpions in the bed. Perhaps it was the noblewoman in her, but Shizuru could not stand hideous little creatures like scorpions or locusts. Or spiders. _Especially_ spiders.

She settled herself wearily, resting her head on its side. In the darkness, Natsuki's bed across the tent was only the faintest of moonlit outlines.

She sighed quietly. Traveling side by side, eating and bathing together, carrying on conversations, trading jests... _Day by day, I feel like less of a captive and more of a companion._ _But do you feel the same?_

Perhaps this behavior was just Natsuki's strange way of "domesticating" Shizuru, acclimating her to her new status. Or perhaps Natsuki only wanted a way to amuse herself on the journey back to Egypt, and when they reached Waset tomorrow she would forget all about Shizuru and become the distant Pharaoh again.

Shizuru _tsk_ed angrily to herself and tossed in her bedding. Judging by the quiet soughing sound from across the tent, Natsuki had already fallen asleep. _Sleeps like a baby. Damn that woman._

She tossed again when the woolen blankets brushed uncomfortably against her legs. The stinging had faded, but now... Oh, how they _itched_! Arika had provided a lotion earlier intended to cool the burning sensation, but it had not really worked. And Natsuki had not been amused by Shizuru's playful suggestion that the dark-haired woman be the one to rub it onto her legs for her.

She would have to think of a suitable way to get back at Natsuki for causing her such discomfort. Still, Shizuru had to admit they did feel nice. Absently, she moved in her blankets to rub a foot along her opposite shin. Smooth.

Suddenly, she smiled to herself in the darkness, remembering her observation that first morning about the ant-like soldiers. She sat up and looked over at the dim outline of the table, atop which she knew still sat the little jars of sweeteners and sauces she and Natsuki had eaten with their evening meal. ...Including a small pot of honey.

"We've got to do something about your legs..." Shizuru murmured to herself wickedly.

* * *

Sometime during that same night, several of the officers sleeping in the tents closest to the inner ring of the encampment were awoken by loud noises.

Girlish, high-pitched yelps rose from the large tent at the heart of camp. Not yelps of pain, more like those brought on by a sudden irrational panic, like a person who had just noticed an insect drop onto them, or had accidentally set their sleeve on fire, or... or perhaps like a particularly deep sleeper who had just awoken to find her legs smeared in honey and swarming with ants.

If the officers had listened closer, they would have heard the quieter sound of musical laughter coming from within the same tent.

* * *

AN: So we went from 4 chapters covering 1 night to 1 chapter covering 4 days. The pacing whiplash is so bad I might need a neck brace. Apologies again for the extremely long chapter.

And "tusked river behemoths" are just hippos, if anyone was wondering earlier. Egyptians saw them as embodiments of chaos because they're very dangerous animals despite their goofy appearance. (Hippos actually kill more people than lions do!) I called them by a different name in this fic because "Hippos of Chaos" sounds like a grunge band. Speaking of music, cookies to anyone who gets the chapter title.


	6. Scepter of the Gods

Deep, deep thanks to every reader, I really appreciate you all and your feedback! :) And apologies for taking so damned long yet again, at least it wasn't as long as last time. All I can say this time is thank goodness for backup files!

This fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

* * *

Natsuki stared up at the docked ship with some trepidation.

Slaves worked on it hurriedly, carrying arks up the gangway, hauling chariots, and leading unharnessed horses up to the rope pen centered on deck. There were several others boats tethered to the dock, all of them being fussed over by slaves and barechested sailors as they made ready to carry Pharaoh and part of her army home. The sailors had not expected the war against Fuuka to be won so quickly - more ships were still on their way to gather the rest of the soldiers and workers.

The ship in front of Natsuki, almost ready to leave, rocked gently on the water as she inspected it under the morning sun. It had a narrow prow and stern for sharper maneuvering along the river, and a short keel to avoid getting trapped in shallow waters. Long oars pricked out along each side of the ship like some overgrown wooden spider had decided to rest at the dock awhile. A box-like cabin squatted at center deck, next to the horses, while the human passengers milled around and dodged sailors who tied lashings and loosened oars.

The sails were furled tight to the one mast, as they would be using the river's current instead of wind to carry them north along the river tributary, eventually streaming into the Nile proper and on to Egypt's capital of Waset. These small riverships were built for speedy transport of precious cargo, so they should arrive in Waset before the day was out. It was not nearly as extravagant as the large royal ship Natsuki had traveled on before, but it was the fastest currently available.

"Have you forgiven me yet, Natsuki?"

Shizuru's lips twitched near to laughter. Standing at Natsuki's side on the dock, she spoke to her mistress as if asking a slow-witted dog whether it had learned its lesson not to walk into walls.

Natsuki was momentarily tempted to toss her overboard. The mental image of a bobbing Shizuru fading slowly into the distance as Natsuki sailed away was quite satisfying. Well, all right, maybe she would turn around and come back for Shizuru once the woman had learned some manners.

"You should not speak to me so," Natsuki said to her absently, still staring up at the ship they were about to board. "Not in public."

"I am always a proper slave in public," Shizuru admonished. Another mischievous smile came. "But when, as now, there is no one close enough to hear us..." Wicked blood-colored eyes danced and mocked her, rimmed in black kohl.

Natsuki groaned quietly. What dark enchantment had possessed her to take this eccentric beauty as her personal slave? What _still _possessed her to keep Shizuru by her side every day, even as she slept? The woman had some inexplicable hold over Natsuki. She was starting to think Shizuru was both demon and goddess wrapped into one skin.

"What will you do, flog me?" the taller woman asked, only half-serious.

"Of course not. I would never flog you, Shizuru."

Shizuru smiled warmly at her. But Natsuki continued, "It would be shameful for a noble to punish a slave with their own hands. I'd have another slave flog you instead." That smile withered.

Frustrated with herself, Natsuki let out a rough _tch_. Just because she was nervous about what was to come did not mean she should bark at her slaves. Especially Shizuru.

Finally, a sailor bellowed that the ship was ready for departure at Pharaoh's command. The dark-haired woman took a deep breath and marched up the gangway as proud and confident as she could manage, very conscious of the hundreds of eyes following her as they did whenever she appeared in front of her subjects.

Only officers - and her slaves, of course - were awarded the privilege of traveling on Pharaoh's ship, and they all saluted as her sandaled feet landed on deck. Shizuru and Pharaoh's honor guard followed her up, and another sailor pulled the long plank aboard after them and untied the ropes tethering the ship to the dock.

Natsuki went to the few horses penned on deck. It was not their first time on water, but most had whinnied and bulged their eyes in fright as they were led up the gangway. She stroked their soft muzzles and murmured reassuringly to them, promising they would make it through this nerve-wracking part of the journey. With a little embarrassment, she found herself wishing she had someone to do the same for her.

At first, the ship rolled on its keel ever so slightly as the sailors pushed off with their long oars. Once clear of the dock, it barreled into motion, letting the strong current carry it on its way to join the great Nile.

Shizuru peered excitedly over the edge as they set off, but Natsuki had to plant her feet carefully to avoid stumbling on the deck. The motion of a galloping chariot was easy for her to handle, but _this_! She felt her gut churn.

"I will rest this afternoon," Natsuki loudly announced to her guards, "No one is to disturb me until we reach Waset."

She made a dignified, self-controlled walk to the ship's one cabin and carefully shut the door behind her.

* * *

Shizuru watched Natsuki stomp off to the cabin and slam the door behind her like a tense child in a tantrum.

The whole morning, she had been terse with her officers and more demanding than usual with her slaves. Few others had seemed to notice, and those who did probably took it as eagerness to be back in Waset, but Shizuru's eyes saw more. She would have described it as almost... anxiety. Was Natsuki really that upset over Shizuru's harmless little trick last night? Perhaps there was something else bothering her. Shizuru_ hoped _it was something else.

All others aboard the ship went about their business once Pharaoh took her leave, and even Arika and the other attendants had found something to busy themselves with for the journey. No one glanced at the sandy-haired woman as she followed Natsuki's path to the raised cabin and stopped outside the closed door.

Going in there might be as risky as poking a sleeping dog, but she had to see if there was something she could do. Natsuki had been away for over a month, and Shizuru did not want to ruin her homecoming by putting her in ill temper with her tricks. But even getting snapped at was better than staying out here and molting with worry that she had somehow angered Natsuki. Shizuru worked up her courage and held it in front of her like a shield as she opened the door and stepped in.

Natsuki was sitting on the edge of the bed, elbows on her knees, head in her hands, fists clenched tightly around strands of dark hair as she stared into an empty tin bucket on the deck in front of her.

"I said no one was to disturb me!" she growled without looking up to see who had intruded. Her striped leonine headdress had been tugged off and dropped onto the captain's table.

"True, but a slave is not really a person," Shizuru said sarcastically, shutting the door behind her and leaning back against it. The narrow bed and even narrower table were all that filled the tiny captain's cabin Natsuki had commandeered. A little window, too high for anyone to peer through, let in sunshine. "At least to many nobles. No different from a fly buzzing in the corner or a piece of furniture waiting to be used."

The dark-haired woman looked up in surprise upon hearing Shizuru's voice, and red eyes widened. Natsuki's face was pale and bloodless, her brow damp with sweat. Shizuru was at her mistress's side before she even realized her legs had moved, and reached out to ask what was wrong.

"It's nothing. I'll be fine as soon as we get off this ship," Natsuki grunted. She dodged the sandy-haired woman's hands, but allowed her to sit down next to her on the bed.

"Are you that anxious about traveling on water?" Shizuru tried to sound reassuring. "It seems a perfectly safe ship."

"I know it's safe. But_ knowing _doesn't help." Natsuki groaned. "And it doesn't ease that nauseating motion."

"Come out on deck. The fresh breeze and open sky will soothe your stomach, or at least your mind."

Natsuki shook her head in refusal and chuckled bitterly. She kicked at the empty bucket. "The Living God can't go about retching over the side of a ship."

Deep green eyes met her red ones, brimful of something Shizuru had never seen in them before. What was it, sadness?

"Nor can a god be seen to have close companions at her side." It was a whisper, full of regret.

Shizuru dropped her eyes for a moment and absently plucked at a stray thread on her slave dress. "Your people seem to respect you plenty. Do you think that would all change because of..." She changed what she had been going to say. "...Because of one boat trip?"

"No, but small displays of weakness add up. Some seasickness here, a poor decision there, an embarrassing public appearance or improper behavior there... Little mistakes are like raindrops, enough of them can eventually wear down a boulder. My authority could erode away under my feet. It is not enough to be strong, I must be _seen_ as strong. 'Pharaoh's strength is Egypt's strength,' my mother always told me."

"You cannot expect to make no mistakes, Natsuki. You're young, you may reign for decades. And," Shizuru added slowly, "From what I've seen, your people will be lucky to have you as their ruler for as many years as they can."

_Ridiculous thing to say!_ Shizuru chastised herself as soon as the words came out. _She has mountains of praise and flattery thrown at her every day, why should it be different coming from yo-_

"Thank you, Shizuru," Natsuki said softly, interrupting Shizuru's thoughts. She was smiling, and a bit of healthy color had returned to her face.

Natsuki took a deep, cleansing breath. "Hopefully, I'll be fully recovered before we have to parade through the city. The people always expect a grand return, especially to show off a successful conquest."

A tingle of fear ran through Shizuru. She had heard tales of the suffering of defeated rulers, had seen it even in the King of Fuuka's dealings with some of his rebellious lords. She tamped the fear down, refusing to let it spread.

"Is that what waits for me, then?" she asked, proud of how calm her voice was. "Parade the conquered queen through the streets in chains, keep her as a trophy of Pharaoh's power..." She did not believe anymore that Natsuki would do such a thing, but...

"No!" Strands of dark hair swayed as Natsuki shook her head vehemently. "You were never my enemy, Reito was. No one in Egypt need know who you were, if you don't wish it."

"I don't," Shizuru said firmly.

Natsuki stared silently at her some moments, green eyes considering. "From the start, you've seemed eager to give up your life of wealth and status. I couldn't be even a fraction so dignified or brave in the same situation." She sounded admiring.

Shizuru barely hesitated over her reply. She said honestly, "I cannot remember a time during that life when I ever knew happiness." There had been only brief moments of release, stolen and tucked away with the few women she had let into her bed out of loneliness, with Shizuru always looking over her shoulder in fear of discovery by parents who kept her on a leash, or later, worse, her rage-hearted husband. Never a woman she could risk giving her heart to.

"That life is behind me, now and forever," she said. Softly, but with conviction. Whatever the future handed her, whether death or freedom or a life of servitude, she would meet it. Besides, this new life had not harmed her so far.

She looked into Natsuki's eyes and let a smile blossom. "From now on, I go wherever your river carries me."

The younger woman opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment a current caught the ship and it rocked beneath them as it adjusted. She groaned and hung her head over the empty bucket again.

Shizuru gave her a commiserative pat on the shoulder and jokingly asked, "Is there a fellow god you can pray to for seasickness?"

Natsuki looked up at her woefully from that ashen face, and Shizuru's heart melted. In private, away from the eyes of others, Shizuru could see the tiny, uncertain creature that hid in the shadow cast by that boulder of authority Natsuki spoke of.

Shizuru clucked her tongue soothingly. "Come, lie on your back and stretch out your body. Hunching over only tightens your stomach."

She helped the shorter woman recline atop the linen covers. And then, to Natsuki's utmost surprise, Shizuru eased herself in right next to her in the narrow bed, positioning their bodies side by side until both were comfortable. Natsuki made no move to stop her, but a shiver ran through her body when their bare arms brushed.

"How can I be sweating and shivering at the same time?" she mumbled morosely. "I must have caught some strange plague in Fuuka. At least I can die on my home soil..." Their golden armbands clinked together lightly as Natsuki shifted her shoulder.

"Don't be silly," Shizuru whispered gently. Her face lay only a foot away from the younger woman's across the pillow. "It's only anxiety. Just try to rest, you will feel better."

When Natsuki continued to fidget and grumble, Shizuru sighed. _Perhaps something to distract her from feeling ill? _She started talking about the first thing that came to mind.

"You know, I have never actually been to the Nile proper, only on small boats along the river tributaries. And I've only dreamt of seeing the sea. Fuuka is completely landlocked."

"I'll take you to the sea someday," Natsuki mumbled, sounding almost groggy now. The soft breath of her words tickled Shizuru's neck. "If I survive this trip..."

Shizuru sighed again. So much for trying to take her mind off it. She smiled when another idea occurred to her. She had teased Natsuki on that first night about singing her a lullaby... perhaps she should do just that.

She cleared her throat and started to hum wordlessly the only song she really knew. Quietly, as if she were merely humming idly to herself. When Natsuki did not protest, Shizuru raised her voice slightly, humming slow and soothing in her throat.

It was an old song in Fuuka, one Shizuru had known so long she had forgotten where she learned it. A love song, it so happened, though not a happy one. Natsuki seemed soothed by it, though Shizuru wondered if she would be as calm if Shizuru actually sang the lyrics, which were rather disturbing.

Black-painted eyelids drooped shut, and by the time Shizuru finished her flowing song, Natsuki had let herself succumb to sleep. Shizuru knew she should probably disentangle herself and leave the bed now, yet she hesitated. That peacefully sleeping face, so close, seemed to grab her and hold her prisoner. She found herself wanting to stay, to rest here with her awhile. After all, Shizuru did not want to wake her...

_She sleeps like a block of granite and you know it_, a voice in her head accused her._ You could easily get up without disturbing her._

Shizuru conveniently ignored the little voice. She would stay here by that peaceful, beautiful face a bit longer. Just to be sure the other woman's rest would not be interrupted, of course. No other reason, she told herself. The little voice laughed at her. But she paid it no mind, instead letting her eyes close as she settled in at Natsuki's side.

The ship swayed gently beneath them as the river carried them home.

* * *

A submissive knocking at the cabin door woke Shizuru some hours later.

"Great Majesty," a guard's voice called over the knocking.

Shizuru brushed Natsuki's cheek with her fingertips to wake her. Green eyes opened, blinked at Shizuru in sleepy incomprehension for a moment, then sharpened when the guard called again.

"Great Majesty, forgiveness for the disturbance, but the ship is docking now. Your slaves have brought your armor."

Natsuki and Shizuru shared a quick look, and the brunette clambered off the bed with a nod of understanding, tugging Natsuki with her and straightening her mistress's clothes so no one would suspect she had been lying abed with her slave.

Natsuki stood up straight and ordered the other slaves to enter. Her rough voice easily slid back into confident command.

Three slaves, led by Arika, breezed in and bowed, then laid out Pharaoh's gold-plated armor, another spotless white _shenti_, her gem-glittering amulet, bronze sickle-sword, and tooled leather belt with ceremonial dagger. Natsuki dismissed everyone but Arika and Shizuru, and the two brunettes, one sandy and one auburn, helped their mistress change.

As they lifted the armored tunic over Natsuki's head, Shizuru wondered aloud, "Why the full scale-mail armor again? You haven't worn it in days." Nor the blue, helm-like War Crown Arika had reverently carried in.

"The people want to see a conqueror," Natsuki said simply.

She twisted her long dark hair up and settled the crown upon her head. Beneath it, her face was perfectly impassive as she prepared to appear before her waiting subjects. Shizuru almost sighed sadly. Natsuki truly was fully armored again.

Natsuki led them back out on deck, where the rest of the passengers saluted once more. Shizuru barely had time to stare at the huge harbor with its hundreds of ships, big and small, before Natsuki quickly headed down to the dock and then onto dry land, where her retinue was waiting.

Natsuki had certainly been right last night when she said the Great Royal Wife would organize a welcome parade of some sort. The huge retinue was already prepared, awaiting only Pharaoh's command to go.

A herd of mounted charioteers waited in a thick line, the main part of the procession. Even the horses looked showy in their decorative blankets and feathered crests. Over a hundred ceremonial guards, armor and spearheads shining, prepared to march alongside of the chariots. Dozens of copies of Pharaoh's standard - the crowned golden falcon perched proudly atop a tall pole - saluted up above the heads of the soldiers in addition to the standards of prominent nobles who had accompanied her on campaign. Adding some merriment to the procession were drummers and elegant dancers. Everyone was practically bouncing on their feet, and the multitude of golden jewelry and bronze armor seemed to sparkle with eagerness in the sunlight.

The officers who had accompanied Pharaoh, decked out in whatever finery their travel-chests could carry, scuttled down from the ship and yelled for slaves to ready their chariots immediately. More from the other ships who had left soon after Pharaoh were unloading also. Everyone moved quickly; no one wanted to miss this opportunity for grandeur.

An oddity also waited for them, Shizuru noted as she stood by Natsuki's side: at least a dozen open-backed carts piled with round loaves of fresh bread. They stood apart from the more numerous carts stuffed with gold and silver trinkets, gems and jewelry, carved gold cups and bowls, little bottles of spices or scented oils, and other precious gifts. Most of those little valuables must be from the royal treasury, as the loot from Fuuka was still making its way back to Egypt with the rest of the army, but commoners would not know the difference. It was traditional for Pharaoh to give out some spoils of war to the people in celebration of victory, but the bread was something unusual.

Natsuki directed one of her guards to ask the slaves manning the carts about it. Shizuru supposed it would have been improper for Pharaoh to speak to those slaves directly.

"Her Majesty the Great Royal Wife arranged for the food to be brought," the guard relayed to her. "She said your subjects would appreciate a full stomach even more than a full coffer."

Natsuki smiled and murmured to herself, "What would I do without you, Mai?"

A confusing sensation flickered through Shizuru's heart at the appreciative murmur. She pushed it away without dwelling on what it meant.

"Shizuru," Natsuki said quietly so only she could hear, "I wish you could ride with me today, but I have to lead this alone. I've arranged for Mikoto, my usual chariot driver, to keep you nearby with the other attendants."

Shizuru nodded and discreetly laid an encouraging hand on Natsuki's forearm before retreating to where the black-haired girl she recognized waited for her. Arika waved excitedly at Shizuru from another chariot and Shizuru waved back as she mounted at Mikoto's side. It seemed only Pharaoh's privileged personal slaves were allowed to ride with the parading charioteers. Mikoto grinned and made a friendly sound in her throat that Shizuru took for a hello, which she returned.

"You seem happy, Mikoto-chan." She recalled Natsuki saying something the night they met about Mikoto having someone waiting for her. "Eager to be home?"

Mikoto nodded vigorously. She looked as if she wanted to break free of the crowd and race to the palace herself. She fell in with the group of high-ranking charioteers who would follow a short distance behind Pharaoh as she led the procession home.

This Mai had organized everything to perfection, and everyone seemed eager to get going now that they were so close. No sooner was Natsuki - perfectly stoic-faced again - mounted in the war chariot readied for her than the amassed parade set off behind their leader. Chariots trotted behind her in rows, followed by footsoldiers, dancers, and the laden carts. Standard bearers and guards marched alongside, and the drummers struck up a boom that found rhythm with the stomping feet and tread of hooves.

They were not without spectators. News of Pharaoh's victory and imminent return had spread fast through Waset the past day or two. Even the first causeway out of the harbor was packed along the cleared central aisle. _Thousands _had gathered, all the way from the harbor to the city's center. Men and women cheered and waved their bare arms in the air, tanned faces either smiling proudly or watching in awe as Pharaoh's retinue passed. Parents lifted small children to sit on their shoulders - years later they would tell their own children how they had seen the Daughter of Re return in triumph.

Every street Natsuki led them through was lined with people, from the poorer mud-brick homes all the way up to the sizable manors of the wealthy nearer the city's center. Farmers, housewives, crafters, traders, herders, smiths, off-duty soldiers, masons, scribes, even minor nobles... It seemed all of Waset had gathered, regardless of trade or class.

The parade flowed onward through the parted, noisy crowd like the river itself, streaming along paved streets toward its goal: the royal palace at the heart of the city. Shizuru thought her neck would creak from swiveling to and fro, trying to take in the entirety of Waset as they made an arrow-line straight through it.

Pharaoh rode alone at the very forefront, reins in one hand and sword point-up in the other, sun-shimmering golden armor seizing everyone's gaze. She seemed almost a statue, stiffly erect and head held high, her eyes staring unwaveringly forward over the feathered crests of her black mares. The cheers and shouted adulation swelled along the streets as she wove through the flood of her people's worship.

Shizuru twisted to look behind them. The rows and rows of charioteers and marching guards stretched out behind the leading party, with drummers still beating a booming rataplan and dancers flowing elegantly through the orderly lines. Slaves manning the carts tossed bread and trinkets over the heads of the guards and into the celebrating masses, who threw back blossoms and lotus flowers to pave the streets beneath the conquerors' feet.

When the parade drew deeper into the city, close enough for her to get a good view of the palace, Shizuru drew an amazed breath.

The massive structure before them was half palace, half fortress. It made Fuuka's royal palace seem a mere sheep paddock, inelegant and insecure in comparison.

Thick, crenelated sandstone walls ringed the central complex, punctuated by gate-houses that protected the massive main gates and several smaller trade gates. Egyptian pylons, carved with huge reliefs and capped in white limestone that shone with the sun's rays, flanked the palace's main entrance like a temple.

Enormous gods and Pharaohs, painted onto the walls or carved in impossibly tall statues, posed in triumph and protection, eyes staring down at the people they provided such a bountiful life for. Brilliant motifs - winged scarabs and cobras, graceful birds and mighty beasts, sun-disks, blossoming lotuses - fanned across pillars and walls and architraves, vibrant in red, blue, gold, green, and any other color the painters could make shimmer in the light of Re's shining eye. Hieroglyphs, just as colorful, scrolled around and along the images, carved in declarations of undying glory and celebration of Egypt herself, nation and people. Even peasants' simple mud-brick homes seemed proud to stand at the foot of such grandeur. The entirety of the riverine city and its palace resonated with life and color.

Leading up to the huge, bronze-strapped cedar gates was a wide granite ramp lined with urns full of blooming plants or basins of scented oil and torches that would be lit come nightfall. Freestanding alabaster pillars that had to be at least fifty feet tall and ten feet thick lined both sides of the main causeway, while another forest of pillars supported decorated architraves around the gates and walls, all the pillars sculpted and carved with more reliefs and ornamentation.

Mikoto noticed Shizuru staring, eyes open as wide as her palms at the breathtaking sight before her.

"Big, isn't it? Her great-grandfather began it," the black-haired girl explained over the rumble of the chariot and the cacophony of the procession. "Wasn't finished until her father's reign. Most Pharaohs spend more time building their tombs on the west bank than they do on palaces on the east bank."

The leading party broke off from the rest of the parade once they reached the gently sloping ramp that led to the palace gates. Natsuki drove on forward, only a handful of chariots bearing her attendants and her highest commanders following behind her. The rest of the parade, both soldiers and spectators, crowded at the foot of the ramp, watching Pharaoh make her way up to the gathering that awaited her just outside the gates.

Natsuki and the others dismounted in front of the broad gates, and slaves came running to take the reins of the horses. Shizuru and Arika took up places with the other few attendants a respectful distance from Natsuki, but still close enough to hear, while the commanders fell in line behind Pharaoh's opposite flank.

Another throng of people stood here before Natsuki. Not the grinning, cheering masses that had followed her from the harbor on, but an orderly line of dignified men and women, dressed in fine linens and heavy with ornamentation. These were nobles, officials of the empire, and leading priests, all aligned somberly but just as eager to greet Pharaoh.

Three women stood at the head of the assembly. Shizuru eyed them up and down, figuring this must be the royal family. The Great Royal Wife, Queen of Egypt, had ruled as regent in Pharaoh's absence, but she looked joyous to see Natsuki return. Short, fiery hair framed a pretty face and expressive eyes clearer than amethysts and shadowed with kohl. Like the other noblewomen, a pleated white gown covered her, with several begemmed bracelets adorning each wrist and a heavy, elaborate amulet nestled above generous breasts.

Standing slightly behind her was... Shizuru's breath caught. Natsuki's mother was the mirror image of her daughter, only this woman's perfectly-sculpted alabaster face was somehow even more beautiful. A lotus in full, ripe bloom, whereas the young Natsuki was still unfurling her petals. At her side was a little girl with long golden hair and a more solemn expression even than her elders.

The Great Royal Wife took precedence over the rest of the family, and so stepped forward to officially greet her spouse. As she moved, her golden crown glittered, shaped as a vulture, the guardian of Upper Egypt, with wings sweeping protectively down the sides of the Queen's head and beak perched atop the redhead's brow to impart wisdom.

Mai spoke formally, hands outstretched in ritual praise. "Egypt welcomes her Pharaoh home in triumph. _Ankh, wedja, seneb_ - life, prosperity, and health to the Living God! Re's eye smiles upon us, and both river and field burst with the bounty ensured by Pharaoh's service to the gods. Light shine eternal upon us, and darkness swallow the enemies of Egypt."

"The gods have made me a conqueror," Natsuki replied, voice carrying clearly to the courtiers. "Egypt's enemies are cast beneath her feet forever - they have been shown the strength of my father Re. The Divine Order endures, now and forever."

More ritual words were spoken - shameless, grandiose ego-stroking, as far as Shizuru was concerned - until formality was dropped for a moment.

Mai smiled warmly and wrapped her slender arms around Natsuki's shoulders in a close embrace. "It's good to have you back safe, Natsuki."

The redhead's warmth seemed to melt Natsuki's cold stoicism. A smile broke out on her face and she returned the embrace - one-armed, because of her sword - and then gave another smile to her mother and little sister.

The leader of the priests coughed politely and rapped his staff on the ground, signifying that the ceremony was not quite done yet. The tall black staff with slanted crest and forked base, a _Was _scepter that gods often wielded in depictions, gave the capital city its name. He was the only priest carrying one, but each man behind him had a full leopard pelt draped diagonally across his chest and spilling over one shoulder, symbols of their unique status. Religious law required priests to shave all hair, and they looked nearly inhuman to Shizuru with their bald heads and eyebrow-less faces that bore no trace of expression.

The high priest himself was the largest man Shizuru had ever seen. Taller than his staff, he also looked to be three times as wide as any of the other priests. The ceremonial pelt draped across his barrel-like chest looked small on him. He stood out from his brethren in another way too; he had a thick goatee and a ridiculous-looking bushy head of curly brown hair that added several inches to his height. He was also the only one with any expression on his face: a smile. Respectful, but also fond in an almost avuncular way. After the Queen completed her part of the ceremony, he stepped forward and lifted his staff in blessing, intoning in a gravelly voice some more about the power of Re and the eternity of the Divine Order upheld by Pharaoh's sacred duties, ensuring life and prosperity for Egypt.

Everyone with a pulse quickly lost interest, but thankfully he finished soon and all the courtiers gave a deep bow in unison to their ruler.

Natsuki gave them a nod of acknowledgment, a friendlier nod to the high priest, and turned back to face the throng of commoners still gathered down at the foot of the broad granite ramp, watching the ceremony above. For a moment, Natsuki looked unsure what to do. Shizuru realized that being the focus of all this brouhaha must be a new experience for such a recently crowned Pharaoh.

Finally, she simply lifted her sickle-sword overhead. That must have been the right thing to do, for the men and women and children all burst into a gleeful roar of cheers and armwaving and raised fists.

Shizuru shook her head in exasperation. Honestly, these people acted as if Natsuki conducted the rising and setting of the sun with her arms. She would never understand the worship Egyptians heaped upon their Pharaohs, who were rarely seen up close by the common masses. To the people, Pharaoh was a crown and a suit of armor, the person actually wearing it only as important as a dressmaker's mannequin.

She cast her blood-red eyes out among Natsuki's celebrating subjects._ None of you have ever known her smile, her scowl, her laugh..._

Formal welcoming now _finally_ complete, Natsuki turned back to her family. She flicked her gaze up and down the line of nobles, searching. "There is someone who should be here, but I do not see her..." she said quietly to Mai.

A frown darkened the redhead's face. "She refused to come," she huffed under her breath, but Shizuru could hear. "I swear to you, Natsuki, one more rude word out of her mouth and I'll... I'll... I don't know what I'll do! You had better do _something_ about her, and soon!"

Natsuki hesitated. "You're the Great Royal Wife, Mai. It is your responsibility to keep Pharaoh's lesser wives in line." Plainly, she did not want to deal with whoever it was that had the redhead all riled up.

"Domestic troubles, Great Majesty?"

Startled, Shizuru looked at the woman who had just stepped forward and spoken. Her voice struck Shizuru, as smooth and slick and electrifying as a Nile eel. She wore the sleeveless white robe of a royal official, but like the nobles she was bedecked in golden and begemmed jewelry, with pearl bracelets on both wrists that clattered softly as she moved.

"I did not expect to see you here, Tomoe," Natsuki said.

Tomoe swept an elegant bow, deep and reverent. "I left my home in Lower Egypt before hearing of your victory, Majesty, and I offer thanks to have arrived in time to see your triumphant return. Great Seth favored me with strong winds to speed me south up the Nile."

Mai blinked a little at hearing Tomoe invoke Seth. From what Shizuru knew, he was god of wind and storms, of wrack and ruin in general. Egyptians did not quite see him as evil, but one of their central legends, known even to the people of Fuuka, told how Seth had enviously slain his brother Osiris. Shizuru hoped this Tomoe woman did not have a brother.

Tomoe suddenly glanced away from Natsuki to covertly run an assessing eye over Shizuru, taking her in from her reed sandals to the kohl that shadowed her vivid red eyes. Yet again Shizuru felt startlement leap into her throat. This woman was the first to look at her; all the other nobles, priests, and officials who had greeted Natsuki at the palace gates had not even bothered to notice the short string of slaves following close behind their ruler. A Pharaoh's slaves were a Pharaoh's slaves, certainly of no business or interest to a courtier. Yet Tomoe had focused on Shizuru in particular, though the sandy-haired woman did not think she stood out from Natsuki's other attendants in any way.

Shizuru resisted the urge to shift uncomfortably. There was something... invasive in that poised woman's grayish-purple gaze.

Tomoe bowed to Pharaoh once more. "I will look forward to presenting my reports to you at your pleasure, Majesty."

"As will I, Majesty," another young woman interjected, stepping forward and offering respects as Tomoe had.

_She looks rather like Natsuki_, Shizuru thought as she observed this dark-haired new woman. Only... there was something unidentifiable about her, something that made her seem colder than Natsuki, and also more brittle. Tomoe regarded the other woman politely, but Shizuru - after living in the rivalry-infested court of Fuuka - could smell dislike rotting beneath the surface. Judging by the dark-haired woman's return glance, the sentiment was mutual.

The two women had similar attire and were placed next to each other near the head of the courtiers who looked on. They must be of the same position, a high position if they were allowed to step forward and speak to Pharaoh at will.

"Official business can wait until tomorrow," Mai said firmly, linking a mutli-braceleted arm with Natsuki and drawing her away before she could be swamped by more people vying for her attention. "We have a banquet to prepare, to finish out this celebration."

Natsuki fastened her sword to her belt and let herself be led into the palace by her wife. She did not turn back to look at Shizuru.

Shizuru understood. Out here, with all these important men and women hanging on her every movement, for Pharaoh to bestow attention on one slave in particular would only cause confusion and rumor-spreading. It would be better for both of them if their companionship was confined to privacy.

Arika tugged Shizuru's hand, indicating that they and the other attendants should follow at a distance. Shizuru nodded and stepped through the open gates.

* * *

Natsuki managed to extricate herself from her family and retinue once they were inside. It was good to be home, but there was something she had to go take care of before letting herself get distracted by tonight's festivities.

She followed a familiar route through the palace, walking past more carved columns and painted walls that depicted her gods and her ancestors at the height of their power. Childhood memories surfaced, of chasing a young Mai down these corridors, being scolded by her own royal caretakers for tracking mud in during flood season or for shooting with her little bow at scorpions and snakes that snuck inside during the summer. She learned to walk beneath the eyes of those gods and rulers, grew up every day reminded of the power that rang in their very names, and the weight of matching their achievements, bringing justice and prosperity to Egypt as they had.

She reached her destination, a simple doorway that led into one of the palace's inner courtyard gardens. To her surprise, there were two spearmen standing to either side of the opening. They looked equally surprised to see _her_ there. But these were simple, low-ranking guards; they would not speak to her or even meet her eyes unless given permission. She could tell them to sit on their spearheads and they would probably do it.

"What are you guarding here?" she asked them.

The man on the left nearly fell over at being addressed by Pharaoh. The man on the right was much steadier, but still kept his eyes respectfully lowered.

"Great Majesty," he said diffidently, "Her Highness the Royal Wife told us not to let anyone into the garden until she left."

Natsuki almost groaned. Apparently, the daughter of the foreign tribal leader had figured out that her new status as a Royal Wife gave her some authority over the palace staff. Natsuki hoped her second wife would not get carried away and start giving out ridiculous orders, or she would have to do something about it.

Natsuki strode forward, determined. The guards did nothing as she passed under the lintel stone and into the walled garden. They would not even think of trying to stop Pharaoh, whatever "Her Highness" had told them.

The walls enclosed a sizable garden, and at its center, a small pond rippled and glittered in the gold of late afternoon. A mated pair of ducks was resting there, floating aimlessly between papyrus reeds and white lotuses that bathed in the summer sun, while catfish swam about lazily and occasionally darted up to compete with frogs for insects on the water's surface. Natsuki followed a stone path around the pond, leather sandals making a heavy tread as she moved deeper in.

Rows of trees surrounded the water, providing much-appreciated shade. Tiny birds gossiped in the branches of fig trees and date palms, which drooped under the weight of their soon to be harvested fruit. Interspersed among the others she walked by were white-barked sycamores and short pomegranate trees.

She took a moment to inhale the calming scents of water and soil. Her home had many such gardens, but this was one of the more secluded ones. Which was why it was a favorite of the young woman she had come looking for.

As expected, Natsuki found her lounging on the soft earth with her back against a tree. Several of the palace's resident cats dozed in the nearby sunlight, and one had even curled up in her lap.

Natsuki approached hesitantly. She had only met this redhead a few months ago, but in that time she had never shared what she would call a friendly conversation with her. Natsuki would have assumed the young woman held some personal dislike for her, but she treated everyone with the same disdain. To say that she was not adjusting well to her new home would be an understatement.

She eased herself down in the shade beside the smaller woman. "I thought I'd find you here. You spend so much time in this garden, you just might take root next to the pomegranates." Natsuki offered a smile to show she meant the jest in a good-natured way.

Nao arched a slender eyebrow at her. "Still alive, I see," she said. From her tone, someone might have thought she was disappointed. Green eyes sharper and more cutting than a leopard's claws passed over Natsuki in a mocking, dismissive glance.

"I suppose they kept you safe hidden in some tent while others did all the real fighting. What with all that ridiculously showy armor, it's probably easier for them to babysit you in a tent than to lift your gold-heavy body into a chariot just so you can ride around and feel important. Have your worshipful peons erected a temple to the _mighty conqueror_ yet?"

Natsuki bristled at the insults. She tried and tried to be friendly with Nao, but the redhead would only lash her tail at her. The taller woman decided to change the subject and try again.

"You've probably heard, but Mai has organized a celebration for tonight. Will you come, at least for the feast?"

Nao replied with three words, two of which were "the feast".

Natsuki winced. The redhead's tongue could be as rough as any cat's. Determined, she tried changing the subject once more. She nodded at the puddle of sand-colored fur Nao was scratching behind the ears.

"You know, her priestesses say the cat goddess occasionally takes the form of one of her creatures to walk the human world." Natsuki reached out to pet the purring bundle in Nao's lap, but the animal lifted its head and hissed at her. She withdrew her hand hastily.

"Uh... Every Egyptian knows you should treat well any cat you see, and care for it if it chooses to make your house its home, as it could be the goddess herself in disguise..." Perhaps Natsuki had done something to offend the goddess; no cat ever seemed to like her. She did much better with dogs.

"Of course the priestesses would say that," Nao said with a sardonic flick of her short hair. She resumed petting the affronted cat and it closed its eyes, content again. "If the common people weren't fed some story about why cats should be protected, then that could lead to fewer cats around, which means fewer hunters to keep down the mice that would otherwise eat all the grain in the city's granaries."

Nao flicked her blood-red hair in contempt again. "You Egyptians and your ridiculous superstitions! Instead of just explaining to people why you do things that keep them from starving to death, you weave a tale about some goddess nonsense to keep them afraid and in their place."

Natsuki tried very hard not to scowl, forced herself to haul up some more patience for this inexplicably infuriating woman. She took a deep breath to steady her temper. "I know Egypt is foreign to you, Nao, and I _do_ try to make things easier for you, but I won't abide blasphemy. How am I supposed to uphold the gods' order when my own wife openly disparages them?"

Nao harrumphed, but said nothing. For a moment, the only sounds in the sunny garden were quacks and splashes from the pond where one of the ducks was fighting with its mate. A few of the cats perched themselves on the pond's edge, eagerly waiting for one of the angrily flapping ducks to stray too close to the rim.

Natsuki raked a hand through long dark hair and let out a frustrated grunt. "Mai wants me to have you beaten, you know."

Nao's hand paused in her petting. "She said that?"

"Well, not exactly. Mai's too kind a soul to really wish someone harm. But I can see her patience evaporating whenever she mentions you. She might not be far from violence."

Natsuki nearly laughed. The image of her usually merciful friend flying into a rage and pummeling Nao relentlessly was rather amusing. The last time she had done anything like that, it was Natsuki who took the barrage, as revenge for breaking Mai's favorite wooden doll. Natsuki had been eight years old at the time, and could not understand why Mai had no interest in playing with Natsuki's dogs with her or practicing archery together. To think that she had once been jealous of the attention Mai gave a little toy. Yet now she could see the warmth in Mai's eyes every time her friend looked at Mikoto, and Natsuki only smiled in approval.

_What about Shizuru? _A voice whispered to her. _What if she finds a pretty little toy among the other slave girls here? Will you be so approving then?_

"Why are you scowling all of a sudden?" Nao asked. "Did your fig-sized brain try to hold two thoughts at once? Maybe you should go rest, give it time to recover before the celebration."

It was a poorly-disguised request for Natsuki to leave her alone. Natsuki's scowl only deepened. This young woman... she practically encouraged people to dislike her.

Why in the world was Nao here in Egypt? Why had she agreed to the diplomatic marriage to Pharaoh, thereby allying her mother's tribes with Egypt's empire? Natsuki had lost track of how many times she had asked herself those questions since they met. _No, I will not punish you, Nao. Not until I figure you out. _She smoothed the scowl from her face and stood.

"I hope to see you there tonight. The rest of our family would welcome you." Natsuki put as much sincerity into the invitation as she could. They _were_ all a family, if a bizarre one, and she wanted peace between them.

She turned and left Nao lounging there, still petting the cat, her piercing green eyes following the dark-haired woman out of the garden.

* * *

AN: Did you know, the obscene length of this chapter is such that if you printed it out on paper, it would stretch the length of the Nile itself? True fact. -.-'

This chapter was pretty exposition-heavy, but next chapter will be very... interesting, fufu. It's about halfway done, so hang in there until the oven beeps and I can pull the finished chapter out.


	7. Serpents

Good grief, I thought this chapter would be the easiest, but it's been the hardest yet to write. It's been sitting at near-complete capacity for ages just because I was struggling with a few scenes. There is no excuse; I should be flogged.

All I can say is thank you all for your continued support and patience; I appreciate it so, so much. =) Here's an extra-long chapter for you! (You also might hate me by the end of it.)

As always, this fic is NOT HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.

* * *

Natsuki nodded to the palace guards stationed outside Pharaoh's chambers before opening the doors and breezing in.

Her anteroom was small by Pharaonic standards. Which meant large by any other terms. Falcons, Pharaoh's emblem, predominated the decorations here. The rooms had been painted with vibrant ornamentation generations ago, so she had made few redecorations upon moving in two months ago. Her additions were dark cedar furnishings and fur rugs fetched by her own arrows. On the walls she kept mounts for swords, bows, armor, and other trappings of war and the hunt. Her other chambers leading off from this anteroom were similarly decorated.

Natsuki had no time to take in the sight of her home, however. She had barely shut the doors behind her and pulled off her crown in relief when someone launched himself into her arms, ecstatic at her arrival.

She laughed as she was tackled to the rugs and covered in kisses on her face, neck, hands, and anywhere else the inquisitive muzzle could reach as it checked to be sure she was still in one piece after being apart from him so long. She shifted to a more comfortable sitting position so the hilt of her belted sword would not poke her ribs as he inspected her.

"Ara, this fellow was not nearly so happy to meet _me_," a light voice said.

Natsuki looked over the furred head at the only other human in the room, who was sitting calmly with one knee crossed over the other in a chair along one painted wall. Arika must have brought her here after the parade to wait for Natsuki.

Point-pricked ears and a long muzzle quivered in the other woman's direction. His slender gray body and long legs flexed as if wondering whether to go bother this stranger who had settled herself in his mistress's domain. The silver band around his neck rattled as he shook his head with a snort and returned his attention to Natsuki.

The dark-haired woman introduced her two companions to each other with a chuckle. "Shizuru, this is Duran. Duran, Shizuru."

Duran was an Arrow Hound, named both for their narrow, pointed build and their use as hunting dogs. He grinned happily to have her back home. Still sitting on the floor, Natsuki rubbed her hands along his muzzle. Without realizing it, she wore a similar grin.

"He's named after his grandsire, my very first dog, given to me by... by my father." Natsuki's grin faltered and her breath hitched, as it often did when she spoke of Kanakht. She cleared her throat. "I keep a whole pack, but he knows he's the favorite, else he wouldn't be allowed in here."

Shizuru rose from her chair. "Well, unless Duran bathes with you, I suggest leaving him here for now. We have a victory banquet to prepare you for, no? What would people say if Pharaoh showed up covered in slobber?"

Natsuki cocked her head. "You really care about Pharaoh's appearance?"

"Hardly. But Arika-san was most insistent before she left," the other woman answered with a twinkle in her eye. "Come, other slaves prepared the bath while you were wandering the palace."

Natsuki gave the hound one last pat and ordered him to wait there. She whispered reassuringly in his ear, "You don't slobber, Duran," before rising and following her slave further into her quarters.

The smell of herbal concoctions filled Natsuki's nose as Shizuru led her to the bathing chamber. She must have done some exploring of these rooms to pass the time, Natsuki realized. Somehow she felt both excited and nervous that Shizuru had been in her home.

Before long, Shizuru efficiently rid her of her sword, jewelry, and clothing and installed her in the still-warm bath in the tile-floored little room. Two stools stood beside the copper tub, with fragrant soaps and hair-rinses and creams and a bunch of other nonsense on a tray atop one. Shizuru settled gracefully onto the other stool and proceeded to subject Natsuki to all that nonsense.

If she had rushed through undressing Natsuki, now Shizuru took her time laving her up and down, rubbing the washcloth along toned limbs and strong shoulders. Long, dextrous fingers threaded through dark hair. Natsuki was scrubbed, washed, rinsed, and washed again.

As she sat chest-deep in the tub, Natsuki did her best to remain stoic under Shizuru's ministrations, as she always tried. Still, oil lamps lit the chamber well, so Shizuru could pick out each little expression that passed over Natsuki's face, like they usually did when she had Shizuru bathe her. Over the splashing water came a soft laugh from the sandy-haired woman.

_She just might have come to enjoy this duty a bit too much_, Natsuki thought grumpily. Even so, there were still a few areas on Natsuki that Shizuru always avoided touching, and neither of them had the courage to speak of why.

Shizuru was running sudsy hands through Natsuki's long hair for the third time when she suddenly said, tone thoughtful, "Seeing your courtiers this afternoon certainly was... interesting. That Tomoe woman... and the woman next to her, the one who looked a bit like you, do they –"

"Nina does _not_ look like me!" Natsuki barked, smacking the water.

The taller woman calmly arched an eyebrow at the outburst. Natsuki deflated a bit. "It's just... that has always been a bone of contention between us," she muttered.

Judging by the cheeky little grin on Shizuru's lips, Natsuki had just put another arrow in the woman's quiver of mockery.

_I need to guard my tongue better around you, or soon you'll have all my secrets in your hands._

"So, Tomoe-san and this Nina-san who looks _nothing _like you... Tell me about them."

Shizuru let her hands slip out of Natsuki's hair. One hand lowered to trail slender fingertips in the water at the far end of the tub, back and forth in teasing spirals that came dangerously close to Natsuki's knees.

"Why do you want to know?" Natsuki asked absently. She unwillingly found her eyes following those slow, swirling motions. "Your duties shouldn't require interacting with them."

"Curiosity," Shizuru murmured, lidding her eyes a moment. "Indulge me?"

The younger woman shrugged. Why not? It might distract Shizuru from mischief for a few minutes.

"They're Royal Viziers, the two highest officials in Egypt, charged with administering Pharaoh's power. One for Upper Egypt here in the south, the other for Lower Egypt farther north. I can't be everywhere at once, so they're authorized to deliver my judgement in keeping with the gods' laws."

Natsuki leaned back against the copper tub and laid her arms along the edges as she told Shizuru of the legions of scribes Viziers kept to see to the daily workings of Egypt. They settled legal disputes, recorded land surveys, oversaw trade and taxes, kept census, managed construction and irrigation...

"They handle any civil issue, really. Of course, they can't do anything major without consulting me or Queen Mai. But it's no small responsibility to oversee half of Egypt. Even the governors appointed to the empire's territories don't have such a difficult task."

Natsuki shook her head in sympathy at the mountains of reports and documents a Vizier must grind through every day. Running a nation was not nearly as exciting as it sounded.

"You still haven't told me about the women themselves," Shizuru murmured, still perched atop the stool like an idol on its pedestal.

Natsuki splashed water in the general direction of that cheeky grin. Did Shizuru expect her to give a whole speech? But she decided to humor her again.

"Viziers are hand-picked by Pharaoh. They must be capable, loyal, and just. I believe my father made good choices. Nina wasn't even a noble before she became Vizier of Upper Egypt, but she has shown unwavering dedication.

"And Tomoe replaced her own father as Vizier of Lower Egypt after he died. It's unusual for the title to be inherited like that, but my father must've thought she'd fit the position well. She's certainly capable. They're both young, and have been Viziers for less than a year, but they've done their duties well so far. I saw no reason to replace them when I took the throne."

Shizuru caught her lower lip between her teeth as she mulled over this new information. She often fussed with her lips, Natsuki could not help but notice, either wetting them with the tip of her tongue when uncertain or biting the poor beauties when deep in thought.

"Any other questions?" Natsuki asked, a bit sarcastically. It would be a pleasure just to relax quietly in Shizuru's company for a while before she had to go back out there and put on Pharaoh's crown again.

"Do you trust them?"

Natsuki blinked. Odd thing to ask. Had Shizuru felt the Viziers were somehow untrustworthy? She had not even spoken to them. Natsuki took a few moments to consider her answer.

"I trust both of them with my life. But I trust neither with my kingdom."

As a child she was taught that the reason Viziers were chosen rather than inherited was to be certain of their loyalty. Viziers' influence sometimes tempted them into trying to challenge Pharaoh's rule if a careful eye was not kept on them. But it had been centuries since that happened. Not since the last time a Pharaoh had betrayed the gods by letting himself succumb to weakness and corruption, so much so that most courtiers had thrown their support behind the challenger and his new dynasty. Of course, the common people had still suffered through the resulting civil war, as they always did no matter who was the nobler man competing for the throne.

"The two of them seem... less than fond of each other," Shizuru said. Her tone showed she knew how much of an understatement that was.

Natsuki smirked. "I think that's for the best, don't you? My mother used to tell me, 'While the lions and hyenas fight over the kill, the vultures can feast.' I didn't understand what she meant until I took the throne."

She stretched her legs out lazily in the water. "Even if they are trustworthy, what better way to keep them from plotting for my power than to ensure they have to compete with each other just to hold their own positions? As long as they continue to cooperate regarding official business."

Shizuru let out a low laugh and flicked water at Natsuki with her fingertips. "Why, Natsuki, I never would have guessed you and your mother had a little deviousness hiding behind those lovely faces."

Red eyes became serious again. "Just be careful, Natsuki," she said earnestly. "Don't let those lions and hyenas pull others into their fight, or not even the vultures will be safe. I've seen how these petty rivalries can fester until the whole thing needs to be removed, and it is never a clean cut."

Surprised, Natsuki nodded slowly. It had not occurred to her that she could learn from one who had lived among her defeated enemies. After all, what could Egyptians, the crown of all peoples, have to learn from anyone? But Shizuru's advice was solid. Even Saeko would have approved.

"Thank you, Shizuru. I'll remember that." Sincerity made her voice even huskier than usual.

Shizuru rewarded her response with a smile. And then, before Natsuki could stop her, she rose abruptly from the stool and bent to grasp the hem of her dress.

Panic rose in Natsuki's chest. Shizuru was not going to... Was she?

She was. With a quick upward pull, the dress came off, and was soon followed by Shizuru's undergarments and sandals.

"W-what are you doing?"

Now just as unclothed as Natsuki, Shizuru winked at her, enjoying the scandal. "I'm sick of washing standing up. I haven't had a real bath in days."

"You can have one later!"

Unheeding, Shizuru climbed into the tub. She lowered herself in, facing Natsuki, until the water was at breast-level for them both. A wave of water was displaced and splashed to the floor tiles, and her long legs brushed slightly against Natsuki's. The bathtub was big enough for both of them, but only just.

A tingle licked across Natsuki's skin as her companion settled in so close. _It must be her warmth in the water affecting me, is all_, she told herself. This same stirring tingle had quickened her pulse when Shizuru had lain beside her this afternoon on the ship.

Despite the fact that her new slave had been bathing her for days now, Natsuki suddenly felt as bare as a falcon plucked of its feathers. She was tempted to pull her knees up and wrap her arms around them in modesty.

Shizuru smiled wickedly and leaned back against her end of the tub. She let out a contented sigh and wiggled her shoulders until she found a comfy rest.

Natsuki groaned inwardly. Shizuru had slithered her way into Natsuki's companionship and now into her bath, of all things. Gods forbid someone walk in and see them like this.

_Yes, _the annoying little voice in her head mocked her, _Gods forbid someone walk in and force you to act like Pharaoh again instead of just any other woman._

Natsuki let out a huff and forced herself to take ease. The dark-haired woman let tension drain from her, let worry seep away, encouraged by Shizuru's peaceful calm.

Soothed, Natsuki regarded her beautiful but unasked-for bath partner. No, that was a mistake; calling Shizuru beautiful was like calling a throne merely a chair.

Shizuru rested her arms on the edges of the tub. Her serpentine armbands, the only things she wore, clinked against the metal, gold and copper alike glinting in the lamplight. Tall, full, and soft, she was relaxing there as if she had no idea of the effect her anguine grace had on Natsuki. Murkiness hid the lower parts of her in tantalizing ripples. Higher up, swirls of water stroked the creamy skin and breasts right at the surface, while sandy hair darkened by dampness clung to her forehead. Shizuru brushed it aside with a wet hand that dripped beads of water onto her full lips.

She might wrap Natsuki's brain in confused tangles with her bizarre behavior, but Natsuki would be lying if she said she did not enjoy looking at Shizuru sometimes.

_Is that why you keep her? To feed your eyes? _That annoying voice was back.

Natsuki growled at it, _No, that is not why I keep her. _Shizuru was... she was something else. Her cheekiness, her secretive smiles, her warm, smooth voice... Even her silent presence at Natsuki's side had been an enjoyment, a comfort these last few days.

They passed a few minutes together in silent contentment, both enjoying the hot soak after days without. Shizuru's thoughts seemed to be following Natsuki's, for she spoke out again after a bit.

"You do not treat me as you treat your other slaves," was all she said. She seemed as surprised as Natsuki that her mistress let her get away with so much in private, no matter how proper they were in public. Natsuki usually ordered the flail for others who disrespected Pharaoh, whether slave or noble.

Natsuki raised her eyebrows at Shizuru and jerked her head to indicate the bath they were sharing.

"You do not treat me as my other slaves treat their ruler," she replied, as if that were reply enough.

From the way Shizuru tapped a finger against her cheek in puzzlement, she clearly did not understand yet. Good, then. Let _her _be the one to stew in confusion awhile.

The sensible part of Natsuki's mind told her that this companionship would only cause trouble for them both, and would stain Natsuki's reputation if it became known. But her heart urged her to risk trust in whatever it was that was growing here. Her heart told her that if she was patient, something precious might find its way to her. And to Egyptians, the heart, not the mind, housed a person's soul.

_And I will bring the blaze of Re down upon any who try to undermine me over this choice_, Natsuki vowed. The Pharaohs of her dynasty were feather-soft in their affection but talon-sharp in wielding their power. She would not allow disrespect from her court, nor would she give her father cause to regret making her his heir.

Decision made, she closed her eyes and leaned back. Her legs brushed against Shizuru's again, but she did not pull them back.

Another few minutes passed when, soft as the lapping water, Shizuru said, "I'm glad you're back."

Natsuki muttered, "What, can't find your own feet without me? I was out of your sight less than an hour this afternoon after the parade."

"No, I am glad_ Natsuki _is back."

She cracked one green eye open, not comprehending.

"I never felt so far from you as I did watching you lead that procession today." Shizuru spoke quietly, as if shamed to admit her fears aloud. Her head lowered and wet strands of sandy hair fell to hide her cheek. "You seemed so... unreachable. So apart. Trapped in your own little oasis, as unreal to me as a mirage to a dying desert-wanderer. I was starting to wonder if I would ever truly touch Natsuki again."

The fear faded from her voice, and she looked back up to hold the green-eyed gaze staring at her in surprise.

"So... I am glad Natsuki is back."

Shizuru was smiling at her now, so warm it seemed to heat their bath water again until another tingle stirred Natsuki's skin.

The dark-haired woman closed her eyes again. She did not realize she was echoing the smile.

"I'll always come back," she murmured.

_Just be patient for me, Shizuru._

* * *

Mai's regal voice filled the palace's banquet hall, carrying clearly through the huge room of sandstone pillars.

The rest of the packed room, including Natsuki at Mai's side, listened as their Queen, with the golden vulture crown gracing her head, gave a formal welcome to the gathered lords, ladies, and officials. She also praised Pharaoh for the victory that was the cause of this celebration and finally invoked the gods' blessing to begin the feast.

Natsuki, wearing Pharaoh's striped headdress again, listened to Mai's speech, grateful that the Great Royal Wife acted as hostess. It saved Natsuki from having to do it. When Mai finished and resumed her seat at Natsuki's side, she realized the redhead was much better with words anyway.

The two ruling Majesties sat on begemmed thrones overflowing with decorative inlays, while the rest of the royal family and the high courtiers had low-backed acacia chairs. Middling officials and nobility were given stools, while the rest of the banquet's attendees, the "lowest of the high", sat on reed mats on the granite floor among the pillars.

Quality wood was scarce in Egypt, but even so, Pharaoh's wealth could have provided a chair for everyone. The seating was just another way to establish precedence among the court. Show loyalty and you earned a chair, displease Pharaoh and you found out firsthand how comfy the mats were.

The vast hall was full to the seams. Egypt's finest were represented here tonight, but they were not the only ones. The empire held dozens of lesser groups under its sway, and established trade connections with dozens more.

Natsuki looked around and saw the myriad of peoples who revolved around Egypt's sun. Ribous from the west, Aegean mariners and Phoenicians from around the Mediterranean, dark-skinned Nubians from the south, nomadic Habirus from east of the Red Sea, and bearded Canaanites, the only people in the hall wearing long sleeves, apart from the Syrians.

Strangely, there were no representatives from the herder tribes who recently allied with Pharaoh through marriage. Perhaps they thought their one representative to Egypt's court was enough of a handful on her own. Natsuki eyed the vacant chair at the royal table. It was unlikely that representative would show herself tonight, despite Natsuki's offer this afternoon.

All these foreign vassals and trade connections... all just more flesh to feed Egypt's appetite for grandeur. A grandeur evident on every person in the hall, Natsuki noted. Glittering around the room seemed to be the amalgamation of half the gold ever mined in the deserts or imported from Sinai. Worn to accent the gold was jewelry of delicate Aegean silver, lapis lazuli, blood-red carnelian, and amethyst and ivory from Nubia. Even the slaves serving the food had been given a little something flashy to add to the glamor.

Lotuses and flower petals were scattered about the room, as if there was not enough color already, and small cones of animal fat smoldered in corners to keep flies from the feast. Musicians played over the general din of chatter and enjoyment, their harps and tambourines offering soft counterpoint to the revelry that was only going to get rowdier as the night wore on and wine pitchers were emptied.

Elegant dancers with very much appeal and very little clothing flowed gracefully around the hall to the musicians' tunes to provide entertainment for those courtiers who preferred something a little more earthy than wine and song. Natsuki was never comfortable with such displays, but half her court would probably rebel if she discontinued the tradition.

The hall was redolent with a hundred scents that tickled her nose, from the perfumed nobles to the flowers to the lamps burning castor oil. Not to mention the food.

Dozens of tables arrayed around the hall were creaking under the weight of platters upon platters of food, all in gold and silver dishes.

Loaves of wheat bread filled baskets, and bowls held grapes, dates, figs, and sliced melons. Dishes held boiled onions and beans, sedge tubers, cheeses, and imported almonds and apricots. There were slabs of meat, from whole roast oxen to pots of stewed mutton to roast duck to salted fish and eel. Even baked hedgehogs were a delicacy, though they had never appealed to Natsuki's taste.

Cinnamon, pepper, and other expensive imported spices flavored the dishes, and carob and honey added sweet to the spice. A bowl of porridge-like Egyptian beer sat in front of each courtier, and of course there was wine aplenty for the insane who enjoyed both wine and beer at the same meal.

Natsuki thought her stomach ought to burst just from seeing so much food.

The royal table sat at the head of the hall but distanced from the rest, where all could see but none were close enough to deprive the royal family of privacy during the meal. Mai sat at Natsuki's right so they faced the rest of the hall, while Saeko, Alyssa, and the empty chair sat opposite them.

Saeko had chosen tonight to bring up a topic of great import – to her – with her older daughter, despite the rather inappropriate setting. The only mar on Saeko's alabaster beauty was her severe expression, and a cold sense of command that demanded respect and obedience from her subjects. Her former subjects, rather.

Two months ago, it was she who sat at Pharaoh's right hand. Now she had forfeited the title of Great Royal Wife, most powerful woman in Egypt – except when Pharaoh happened to be a woman, too – to her new daughter-in-law. Saeko did approve of Mai, and it was not exactly a demotion... But it was the "not exactly" that ate at Saeko's insides like a gutworm.

"Are you listening to me, Natsuki?" she asked sharply.

Natsuki was, unfortunately. She had inherited most of Saeko's looks and some of her cold stoicism, but she hoped her heart had been warmed a little more by her father Kanakht's influence than Saeko's had. The former Queen had loved her husband dearly, but she always held to strictness when it came to what was expected of royalty, and would accept nothing less than sculpted perfection in all the family's doings.

"Now is really not the time, Mother."

"Nonsense. I have you under my eyes now, where you cannot slip away and make excuses. You know what it is we need to discuss."

Natsuki did know. Even Alyssa knew, though Natsuki saw no sympathy in the little smirk her ten-year-old sister flashed her between bites of hedgehog.

Saeko tapped her wine goblet impatiently with a fingertip. Natsuki also had a cup, but hers had only been partially filled; wine did not agree with her.

"A woman Pharaoh bears the same responsibilities as her forefathers," Saeko began firmly.

Mai groaned into her own cup. Natsuki shared a fatigued look with her closest friend. Saeko had brought this issue up before in the two months of their reign, though she had never gone into detail about how exactly Natsuki and Mai were to resolve it.

"Natsuki, you cannot delay any longer. You and Mai-san have a responsibility to continue our dynasty, to ensure that Egypt will have a good ruler after you are gone."

Saeko straightened intently in her chair as she came to her point.

"You need to provide an heir."

"How?" Natsuki asked bluntly. She grumpily jabbed her knife into the slab of spiced mutton on her plate.

Saeko's confidence was not at all damaged by this glaringly obvious boulder in her path. "It has happened in the past, begetting a child outside the normal way. The histories tell of Queens conceiving an heir miraculously while their Pharaoh was away at war."

Mai choked on her wine as she tried to stifle a laugh over just how "miraculous" that was. Saeko silenced her with a chilling look.

The older woman went on, "Egypt was in need of heirs, and the gods provided, just as they provide us with water and harvest. No one dared question the legitimacy of such god-born children. Nor would they question yours."

Natsuki shook her head in exasperation. Her and Mai, make a child? The idea was just plain impossible. She was about to tell her mother so, firmly, but a sudden doubt made her hesitate. Did she really know what was possible for the gods? According to the priests, the same gods had ordained her birth, had chosen her for the crown she now wore, and had even placed a divinity of sorts in her mortal body, all so she could carry out their will as Pharaoh.

She shifted uneasily in her throne. Who knew what else their will had planned for her life? But besides, even if they _could_ convince the gods to provide, there were other reasons for her and Mai to refuse her mother's demand. Natsuki was about to say so when the youngest royal decided the conversation would benefit greatly from her input.

"I am _far_ too young to be an aunt," Alyssa told them primly. The fact that she had to sit on a stack of cushions atop her chair just to lift her elbows off the table did not remove her conviction that her opinion was absolutely necessary to their debate.

Saeko arched an eyebrow at her younger daughter's dissent. "And if I am not mistaken, it is _far _too late for a certain child to still be up."

A pout formed on the girl's delicate little mouth, and big blue eyes conjured up a tearful display. Alyssa was rarely so expressive toward others, but even her best performance could not convince Saeko to relent. The older woman's expression did soften, though, and she stroked the little blonde head fondly before summoning attendants to take her to bed.

Natsuki scowled. Saeko never cossetted _her_ so. But that was typical; Saeko had always doted upon her younger child. Perhaps lately part of the adoration was because Alyssa looked so much like Saeko's beloved husband, with that golden hair and clear blue eyes. Natsuki was not the only one grieving.

The girl had barely been escorted out of the banquet hall before Saeko took up the argument again, all softness gone. "More than one heir will likely be necessary. You know the sad numbers as well as I; near a third of children do not reach their fifth year."

Natsuki countered angrily, "And women die in childbirth all too often. You know that better than I." She bit her lip, regretting that last statement as soon she let it out.

Saeko flinched. She unconsciously cut her eyes toward the chair Alyssa had vacated. No courtier dared speak of just how close Saeko had come during the birth of her second-born, nor why there could never have been a third-born.

Mai reached across the table to lay a consoling hand on Saeko's wrist, a gentle look in her amethyst eyes. Silence held the three women for a moment, the background of song and merriment seeming especially bitter.

"I'm sorry, Mother," Natsuki whispered in apology, "I should not have -"

"No, Natsuki," Saeko interrupted. She patted Mai's hand away, drew a ragged breath, and went on. "It was... negligent of me, to grant your father his wish of being only with me, to put our love above our duty. I always held his heart, but after I became unable to bear more children..."

Saeko pursed her lips in displeasure, but forced herself to keep on. "I should have forced him to be with his lesser wives as well."

Now it was Natsuki who flinched. "How can you say that?" she demanded. The thought of her father forced into the arms of one he did not love disgusted her.

"Because he is gone now, and I have only two pieces of him left!" Saeko snapped, fiercely slapping her palm against the table, rattling the plates.

The older woman took another deep breath through gritted teeth and regained her cold composure again. Natsuki had never seen her this on edge. Normally she was all indisruptible dignity no matter what was thrown at her.

"More importantly, Egypt has only two pieces of him left, when we should have more than just Alyssa-chan and you to rely on for a stable rule."

Natsuki's hands tightened into fists. "So," she said coldly, "Not only do you want to endanger Mai's life, you want to endanger it repeatedly."

Mai touched Natsuki's shoulder in concern and tried to interject, but Natsuki ignored her friend for the moment and kept her gaze on her mother.

"And will you try to arrange more marriages for me, so I can give myself to strangers I don't love, so I can endanger their lives too?"

Saeko's green eyes narrowed harshly. Her voice came out even colder than Natsuki's. "How dare you sit there amidst all this wealth in all its obscenity and act like some kind of victim. Royalty has a simple price, yet you selfishly refuse to pay it even when you already know Mai-san is willing."

Natsuki forced her fists to unclench and slowly exhaled to cool her temper. Her father's calm voice spoke in her memory. "_Never make a decision in anger. Hot heads are for the battlefield and nowhere else."_

The infuriating part was that she could find no solid reason to object to Saeko's idea, if the higher powers would actually make it possible to carry out. _I'm willing to risk my life in battle a thousand times_, she reminded herself, _If that's what it takes to protect the people the gods have put into my care. _So why did this one duty seem so much harder to face? Was she just being selfish, as Saeko had accused? She was too incensed to reason it out right now.

At the break in conversation, one of the slaves who had been hovering unobtrusively some distance behind them, outside of hearing range, now walked over and held out a wine pitcher in case any of the royal women needed a refill.

"I will hear no more of this tonight," Natsuki told her mother.

Saeko arched an eyebrow, but even she knew not to press the issue any further. Not for a while anyway. The older woman held her goblet out for the slave behind Natsuki's shoulder to reach across the table and fill.

A familiar scent caught Natsuki as the slave reached past her. Surprised, she jerked her head around to meet the slave's blood-red gaze.

What was _she_ doing here? Natsuki had told her stay in Pharaoh's chambers and have the evening to herself, where she would not have to be under the scrutiny of so many courtiers who might pick her out.

Shizuru winked discreetly at her when she finished pouring Saeko's cup and started on Natsuki's, not knowing that she did not drink wine. "_You didn't think I'd miss out on a banquet, did you?" _that wink asked. Natsuki doubted the other women noticed it.

"I do not think I have seen this one before, Natsuki. A new find?"

Natsuki blinked, confused by her mother's question. It took her a moment to realize that "this one" referred to Shizuru. Saeko was not being rude, not by the standards of nobility. After all, a slave was, how had Shizuru once put it, only a piece of furniture. Yet for some reason it galled Natsuki to hear this particular slave spoken of with so little regard.

Ignoring the question, she quietly thanked Shizuru for filling their cups and told her she would not be needed for the rest of the night. Shizuru bowed – to the others it seemed respectful, but Natsuki knew there was a little sarcasm in it – and retreated to the corner she had been observing them from.

When no answer came, Saeko prodded, "I make a point of knowing which slaves you have chosen to give the honor of being your personal attendants. Picking a new one while away is not like you, Natsuki."

"It is also not your concern, Saeko-san," Mai put in firmly. By her tone, Natsuki was not the first person Saeko had criticized over choice of attendants.

"Pharaoh's behavior is every Egyptian's concern," Saeko murmured over the rim of her goblet as she sipped. Sharp green eyes trapped her daughter's identical ones. The chill in those eyes seemed to flash against the heat of the lamp-flames illuminating the hall. "The stability of royalty is every Egyptian's concern. What sort of legacy will you leave behind with your actions?"

Natsuki ground her teeth. Stability, legacy. Her mother was trying to steer the conversation back to _that_ topic, despite Natsuki's wishes. She had had no interest in Shizuru after all save as an excuse to voice her arguments again!

Before Natsuki could let anger get the better of her once more, Mai came to her friend's rescue again. "You overstep yourself, Saeko-san. Let's all just enjoy being together again after over a month. Tonight is supposed to be about celebration."

Saeko arched an eyebrow at Mai's firm, accept-no-dissent tone, but the redhead did not shy away from her as she might have a few months ago. Saeko pursed her lips and stood.

"I have had enough celebration for one night."

With that, she bid them goodnight and swept elegantly from the hall, wearing aloofness like a crown again. The nobles at the tables she passed as she left ceased their merriment to stand and bow. Those who were not already drunk, anyway.

Natsuki sighed. She wished she had asked her father more about how to balance a Queen's power, even a former Queen. Wryly, she counted up just how many frustrating royal women – current and former – she had to deal with at the moment.

Now alone at their table, the two friends were silent. The feast carried on in front of them, most attendees too caught up in revelry to spare more than an occasional glance up at the royal table, and even then they had no idea what the women had been discussing.

"Don't be angry, Natsuki. You know she loves you," Mai said after a time.

"I'm not a little girl any more, Mai. I am Pharaoh and she is a member of my court. I need her respect and her cooperation, not just her love."

Mai tugged at a strand of fiery hair beneath her crown as she chose her next words carefully. "The Great Royal Wife should always support her Pharaoh in front of others, but... I happen to agree with Saeko-san's concerns here. Though not the way she chose to press them."

Natsuki groaned in defeat. She was tempted to yank off her own crown and run a hand through her hair in frustration.

"Oh don't whine at me, Natsuki. You haven't had Saeko-san on you like mosquitoes on a cow's tail the entire month you were gone," Mai said sourly.

Natsuki _tch_ed roughly. "You can't let her bully you, Mai, you know that. You're a high-born noble, you have your own dignity to uphold besides that of your royal title."

Nobles, wives, Viziers, foreigners, even her own mother... How many more of them would try to pluck their own piece of Pharaoh's power, like fishermen all trying to hook in the same catch until they tore the thing apart? Saeko was no longer the right hand of the throne, and if Mai would not teach her that then Natsuki would have to.

"What was I supposed to do, use my new power as Queen to punish her?" Mai sounded appalled at the notion. "She is _grief-stricken_, Natsuki. Do you know how she wept while you were away at war, lying awake with fear that the next day might bring news of another death of one she loved? Her slaves were so worried about her they came to me in secret, even though they knew she'd have them flogged for telling anyone."

Lost for words, Natsuki said nothing as Mai went on.

"Her arguments are good, Natsuki, you must admit that. Tonight celebrates your first successful war, but more fighting will come, that is for certain during any Pharaoh's reign. And besides, what if you were to fall to some other injury or illness? If you die without an heir, you put the responsibility of continuing your dynasty solely on Alyssa-chan's shoulders. You think she'll stand a chance of exerting her own power over all these courtiers, over _Saeko-san_?"

What Mai did not add, but what Natsuki already knew, was that Mai actually did want this, for more than just political reasons. She had always wanted children.

"The moon is right for me these next few days," the redhead said quietly, "Else we'll have to wait another cycle if our joining is to have any hope of success."

"But, it's..." Natsuki shifted on her throne, scrambling for a word to describe the uncomfortably hot, thorny sensation that ran down her spine, from her heart to her gut, at what Mai was asking of her. "It's too soon. Besides, you know it can't work. Me, make you conceive? It's ridiculous!"

Mai laid a calming hand on Natsuki's arm. "We've known for years that someday we might have to make heirs for Egypt. We never knew_ how_ exactly, but I'm sure the priests can devise some way to ask the gods for help with this."

She dropped her amethyst gaze and tapped her fingertips nervously on Natsuki's golden armband. A moment of hesitation, then the redhead asked, "Is the thought of me so terrible?"

Natsuki's throat tightened. She knew what Mai was asking. If they prayed to the gods to grant them an heir in such an unusual way, it was quite likely the divine powers would still require them to join in the more usual way. But Mai was her friend, her closest friend since childhood, the first person who could chip through to Natsuki's core. Their marriage, arranged by their parents when they were small, had been for political partnership, not...

Natsuki muttered, "Mai, you know that's not the issue here." Wasn't it? Anger resurfaced, anger at herself for not being able to piece together what she wanted to say.

How she wished the two of them were away from here, away from the watching eyes and the gathering that seemed so awful in its simple celebration when all Natsuki wanted to do was tear her hair out. She felt like some animal trapped in a snare. Where was her usual confidence, her willpower? Why did it always desert her when she tried to speak from the heart?

She lowered her head. Words came out hushed.

"I was ten when I almost lost my mother, and now I have lost my father. Are you now asking me to risk losing one of my few friends, too?"

Mai tilted Natsuki's face back up to meet her amethyst eyes. Her hands were warm on Natsuki's flushed cheeks, and their soothing touch gave her back a little vigor.

"Trust me with this, Natsuki," Mai said. She quoted, "'Pharaoh must be the heart of Egypt, but the Queen must be the heart of her Pharaoh.' Remember?"

Natsuki's eyes widened. She had heard that before, from...

"Your father wasn't the only royal to train his successor." Mai gave a slightly abashed smile. "She came to me herself the night before you and I were wed and handed me this crown from her head, and those were her final words of advice when she entrusted me with her title. She was entrusting me with _you_, really."

Her friend brushed a thumb across Natsuki's cheek.

"She chose the right one for the task," Natsuki said huskily. "I don't think our parents knew when they arranged our marriage just how much I'd come to need you." She did not want to imagine what sort of ruler she might become without Mai's compassion to temper her.

Natsuki cleared her throat uncomfortably. This sort of talk was not something she was good at. She caught Mai's hands in hers and gently tugged them down.

"Do you really believe this... this _attempt_ would be best for Egypt?"

"Yes." Mai's voice rang with certainty. "And I think your father, Pharaoh Kanakht, would have agreed."

That was the final blow that did Natsuki in, and Mai knew it. Natsuki nodded her crowned head in acquiescence. She took a deep breath and forced some optimism into her voice.

"Well, then, who am I to defy the Great Royal Wife?" The attempt at levity sounded feeble even to her own ears. "I'll talk to the high priest tomorrow and see what he can arrange for this rather unique circumstance. Maybe Mother was right, and the gods will provide for us if we make the proper offerings. They've certainly done stranger things."

Natsuki was still skeptical that this idea would even _work_, but what could they do but try? If it failed... She shuddered. If it failed, she did not want to think about what they would have to resort to to continue the royal line.

Decision made, Natsuki turned back to her food. Yet she found she had no more appetite. She caught sight of the wine goblet in front of her. The one Shizuru had filled for her.

_Shizuru..._

Natsuki sighed. A drink sounded damn fine right about now.

* * *

Oil lamps filled the banquet hall with a rich light, save for a few corners between thick pillars that formed protected nests of shadow the light could not reach.

Shizuru had staked out a little lair of sorts in one such corner. The dimness did not hide her completely, but it meant glances would wander over her without really noticing she was there.

Hooded red eyes, darkened by kohl and masked by the shadows, peered out at the rest of the banquet. She stood at the end of the hall, behind the royal table and away from any others. She was close enough to come if Natsuki needed her, though.

The sweet song of a harp reached Shizuru's ears. She hummed softly along with it as she watched the scene before her.

She held a wine pitcher in one hand, her excuse for lurking near the high table, though she had only approached them that once. She might serve the other lords and ladies if asked, but they were in for a surprise if they expected any obsequiousness from her. She could accept servitude, but she refused degradation.

The former queen still wore the plain white dress of a slave, her only adornment the golden armbands Natsuki gave her the night they met and the protective amulet from her fellow slave and new friend Arika. The blue-eyed girl was wandering the other end of the hall, keeping an eye on her duties but obviously distracted by all the excitement.

The banquet was rather entertaining, Shizuru had to admit. She let her attention wander to one of the dancers, a gorgeous girl in nothing but a delicate gold belt and earrings, swaying to the rhythm of tambourines.

Shizuru forced her eyes away from the tempting sight. Beautiful women were a weakness of hers, but she had a much more fascinating – and appealing – subject to observe tonight.

She could not pass up this opportunity to observe the strange creature who was now her mistress in her own environment. Shizuru would stay nestled here silently, patiently, for hours if she had to, just to snatch one scrap of information. There was still so much she wanted to learn about Natsuki, despite the younger woman's attempt to keep Shizuru away from the banquet.

It had been a pathetically sweet attempt to make things easy for Shizuru; she could tell Natsuki feared her new slave would resent having to wait on the same kind of people she had once been counted among. She need not have worried. Natsuki had also said she did not want anyone to bother Shizuru, but so far no one, even other slaves, had paid any special attention to her.

It was an odd sort of invisibility, being a slave. Only noticed when needed and then promptly forgotten once the need was satisfied. She was glad there was at least one Egyptian whose eyes saw more than just another slave when looking at Shizuru. But what exactly Natsuki saw in her, if not another slave, was still a mystery. Hence the need for careful observation.

Natsuki's mother – Saeko, Arika had told her earlier – rose from their table, drawing Shizuru's focus. The older woman cast a severe look at her daughter before walking away.

Shizuru could not help following Saeko with her eyes as the cold, elegant noblewoman left the hall. As soon as she was gone, Shizuru's gaze returned to Natsuki and looked her up and down, considering.

Saeko was certainly the more beautiful of the two. So why was it that this strange, weightless fluttering in the chambers of Shizuru's heart only surfaced when she looked at Natsuki, when she heard her name called in that low, rough voice?

_Capturing me and carrying me off was not enough for you, was it? _she thought. _Now you must torment me without even realizing it._

So lost in thought was she that she did not hear the approach of another person into her secluded little den.

"Good evening, Your Highness," an unmistakable voice said softly. Shizuru had only heard it once before, but no one else sounded like that.

She twitched in shock and almost dropped the pitcher. She spun to stare at the young woman now at her side, who seemed to be waiting eagerly for a response. The other woman wore the same sleeveless white robe and abundant jewelry as she had when Shizuru first saw her outside the palace this afternoon. Grayish-purple eyes studied her from beneath black-painted lids. She held a wine goblet in one hand and was twirling it idly between her fingertips.

When Shizuru could not find words, Tomoe prodded, "Am I not in the presence of the Queen of Fuuka?"

Startled questions swarmed in Shizuru's head. Why on earth would Tomoe leave her own table and come pick her out like this? How could the Vizier know who she used to be? Was that why she had touched Shizuru with that unnerving stare earlier today?

Still shaken, Shizuru pulled up her defenses. She answered warily, "Fuuka no longer has a queen, or a king. Only a Pharaoh."

Shizuru inhaled the Tomoe's flowery perfume as she spoke. She had worn a similar kind herself only a week ago, yet she had grown used to having Natsuki's strong herbal perfume on her hands after she rubbed it onto her mistress's skin each morning. Somehow, it was now the much sweeter flowery scent that had become unappealing to Shizuru.

"Do you know Fuuka well... my Lady?" Shizuru hesitated over the title. She was unsure how a slave was supposed to address a Vizier. But she had overheard other dignitaries called such tonight.

No other slaves or courtiers seemed to notice the two women in the dim corner, too busy with celebration were they. Though she was sure it would raise quite a few eyebrows if one of the highest officials in the land was seen conversing with a slave.

Tomoe made a slow, dismissive gesture with the hand holding her goblet. Pearl bracelets clattered as she moved.

"I care nothing for tiny countries along our empire's borders. Others of the camarilla may be blind, but when _I _saw you with Pharaoh this afternoon, I just had to learn more about you. I have my sources, and they told me you rode into Pharaoh's camp wearing a coronet the night she took Fuuka's capital. I am not a fool, to be unable to figure out who you must be."

Even apart from that slick-smooth voice, Tomoe had an unusual inflection to Shizuru's ears. An odd blend of formality and almost… contempt?

"And they found me your name... Fujino Shizuru." She caressed the name with her tongue, tasted every syllable as it left her mouth. "Strange, but lovely. As you yourself."

Shizuru supposed a Fuukan name would sound strange to an Egyptian, as they did not take family names. Possibly the Vizier's "sources" asked other new slaves captured from Fuuka and they had known the name of their king's wife.

"I must say, I can see why Pharaoh wanted to snatch you up for herself." The younger woman caught the tip of her tongue between her teeth in a gesture that was probably intended to be either cheeky or mocking and managed to be both.

Shizuru's tongue, however, unconsciously darted out to wet her lips in uncertainty. This intruder into her lair seemed to be feeling her out, probing cautiously as if deciding whether to steal an egg from its nest while the falcon's back was turned. What sort of response was the woman looking for?

She did not respond to Tomoe's efforts. Let her stretch herself out a little more so Shizuru could see her aim.

Tomoe swirled her goblet slowly. The Vizier tried a different angle of approach.

"You must hate her. Pharaoh."

"Must I?" Shizuru evaded.

"Fuuka could never match Egypt's wealth, of course, but you must have had your own bite of luxury as its queen. And then she took everything from you, forced you into servitude, and now you belong to her."

Shizuru tilted her head. "Belong to her..." she repeated. She had not thought of it in quite such terms.

_Belong._ Was that what she felt when she looked at Natsuki? A sense of belonging?

"No," Shizuru said softly, as much to herself as to Tomoe, "I could never hate her."

Tomoe deflated a bit, obviously confused and disappointed that the conversation was not following the course she had tried to prod it down.

She obviously felt a more direct tack was needed. She moved a step closer to Shizuru and reached a hand out.

Shizuru recoiled slightly without realizing it. "I believe Pharaoh would be most upset if someone laid a hand on her personal attendants." She had no idea if that was actually true, but she did not want this woman touching her.

The Vizier only gave her a conspiratory smile and continued forward, reaching for the taller woman's armbands, shaped like slender groundsnakes coiling around her upper arms. Tomoe traced the sinuous gold form with a fingertip but was careful not to touch the creamy skin beneath, heeding Shizuru's warning yet still determined to push her limits.

Her hooded eyes never leaving Shizuru's, Tomoe said, "You know, the cobra represents Lower Egypt. It is also my personal sigil, as Vizier of Lower Egypt. It seems you and I are alike." She pulled her hand back and smiled triumphantly, like she had won something.

"I'm afraid not, my Lady. Cobras are venomous. My groundsnakes are constrictors."

"Ahh..." Tomoe's eyes widened in anticipation. "So then, you prefer to squeeze the breath from your prey slowly, feel their little lives drain away as you wrap them in your coils?"

The elegant young woman laughed, low and rich, as if that disturbing image somehow pleased her. Her smile became a smirk. "Not my method, I must say. Fangs out, venom dripping – a sudden strike, like lightning." She snapped her fingers to demonstrate.

Unimpressed, Shizuru asked wryly, "Don't cobras hypnotize their prey before the kill?"

"That depends on whether I am merely satisfying my hunger or looking for a more pleasurable capture."

Gray-purple eyes traveled up and down Shizuru's body again, weighing just how pleasurable a capture a former queen would make.

"You are something special, Fujino Shizuru, are you not? I knew, knew the moment I saw you. Impossible for you to be just another of Pharaoh's strays."

Despite herself, Shizuru could not stop an intrigued, "Another?"

Tomoe flicked a graceful, careless hand toward a different part of the banquet hall, where another one of Pharaoh's slaves was still hovering in attendance. The one with big blue eyes so full of friendliness and an easy smile that never ceased to make Shizuru want to smile back.

"It was a few years ago. Before I became Vizier." Tomoe's tone was so dismissive of that "before" time, as if all of Egyptian history had merely been the buildup to her becoming Vizier.

"Most noticed nothing, but I have quick eyes when it comes to Pharaoh. I remember a half-starved peasant girl suddenly appearing in Pharaoh's – well, she was only heir apparent at the time – entourage one day. Naturally I had to find out her story. But the truth proved to be disappointingly uninteresting. Fourteen years the orphan of destitute peasants, then the grandmother who took the girl in died, too. My sources told me the girl had sold everything she owned – nothing much at all, really – for a decent burial for the old woman, to ensure her soul would find peace in the afterlife.

"I hear the girl was barefoot in rags when she stumbled into the street in front of the royal heir's chariot, so dazed from hunger she did not know what was happening and almost got herself trampled to death."

Tomoe laughed, entertained by her story and assuming Shizuru was also.

"And then, bizarrely inappropriately, the future Pharaoh picks the little wretch up in her own arms and drives her back to the palace, and the next day there is a new face following her around like a puppy.

"Can you imagine?_ Touching _a girl like her? Pulling a new slave off the _streets_, like buying fruit from some farmer's cart? I have no idea why Pharaoh stooped to such an indignity." She laughed again, more disdainfully this time, and plainly expected the sandy-haired woman to join her.

Shizuru gripped the handle of the wine pitcher so hard her knuckles turned white. It took all the willpower she had to resist throwing it in Tomoe's face.

"I'm not surprised someone like you would not understand," Shizuru said coldly. "Someday you will choke on your own venom, cobra."

It was probably very unwise for a slave to say such things to a noble, but whether or not Natsuki protected her, Shizuru would not allow someone to speak so of her young friend.

Tomoe's eyes narrowed to slits, shock and anger glittering in them. She puffed up as if to strike, and her hand twitched like she was thinking of using it against Shizuru.

Shizuru met Tomoe's glare, matched her anger, and silently dared her to make the first move.

A few heated, precarious moments passed, then Tomoe cooled herself. That slick, confident smile returned, surer than ever that things would go her way, as though she had in her clutches some secret no one else knew.

"I always get what I want, Shizuru." Her honeyed voice was full of sick promise.

Shizuru hissed. On top of it all, this woman presumed to call her by her given name, without even an honorific! Shizuru was surprised to realize that she wanted to hear that from one person only.

Shizuru somehow managed a polite withdrawal. She would not let this woman bring her down to rudeness. "Excuse me, I see I am needed."

She walked away without bowing, and did not bother looking back to see if the Vizier's eyes were still burning at her.

Luckily, the royal table did in fact seem to need her at that moment. The feast was winding down as the night wore on. The performers had stopped, and most of the attendees had dispersed back to their own quarters. Those too wine-dazed to walk straight summoned slaves to carry them by the shoulders.

Surprisingly, it seemed Natsuki might be one of those. As Shizuru approached, she could see that Natsuki's scowling gaze was unfocused and she was gripping the table edge carefully as she tried to rise.

Shizuru blinked. What was wrong with her? _I only filled her cup once._ _Don't tell me the awed Daughter of Re cannot handle anything more potent than beer-porridge._

Mai and Arika were laughing gently as Natsuki hauled herself out of her throne with a grunt. The younger brunette took one of Natsuki's arms over her shoulders, and her mistress slumped against her. Thankfully the remaining courtiers seemed not to notice that Pharaoh was in such a deplorable state, and the few who did were too haze-eyed to remember in the morning.

"Make sure she gets to bed in one piece, Arika-chan," Mai ordered with an affectionate chuckle.

The Great Royal Wife caught sight of Shizuru. Curiosity flickered in those amethyst eyes, but thankfully Mai decided not to pry like Saeko had. "And you, take good care of her too," was all she said.

Shizuru nodded and left the pitcher on the table before pulling Natsuki's other arm over her shoulders. She could feel Mai's eyes follow them as the two slaves led the dark-haired woman out of the hall.

Arika directed them along the sandstone corridors and back toward Natsuki's rooms. It was slow going, with Natsuki having great trouble placing her steps and growling angrily when the floor kept cunningly evading her feet, but eventually the three women made it back to Pharaoh's chambers with as much grace as possible under the circumstances. Natsuki managed to retain at least some dignity.

Arika giggled as they half-led, half-supported Natsuki through the anteroom and into her bedchamber.

"We'll certainly eat well tomorrow," the girl said to Shizuru, "Nobles are fussy eaters, like toddlers. There's always plenty left over after banquets for slaves to feast the next day."

Somewhere along the way, Natsuki had started grumbling under her breath. Her voice rose now, though the words remained an incoherent jumble about how she was fine, that she did not need slaves to carry her, that she was damn well going to show her mother up, that Mai did not know what she was asking of her.

"What in the world are you blathering about, Natsuki?"

Natsuki dissolved into more grumbles. Abruptly, she went limp in their arms, and had to be dragged the last few steps before she could be unloaded onto the bed.

Unburdened, the two brunettes let out sighs of relief. Arika plucked the blue and gold headdress from the unconscious woman's head and placed it reverently in its ark along with her other crowns.

"Her head's going to gnaw her apart in the morning." Arika made a sound somewhere between a rueful sigh and a barely restrained laugh. "Maybe I should go get a damp cloth to put on her forehead for the night. I hear that helps."

Arika trotted out, leaving Shizuru to care for their mistress for a few minutes. With an amused little smile, Shizuru sat on the bed beside Natsuki went about her usual nightly duties of removing the younger woman's sandals, her golden armbands and wristbands, and her silver amulet, placing them on a table beside the bed.

The dark-haired woman did not stir. She simply lay there on her back, sprawled atop the leopard pelt decorating her gold-framed bed. She was well and truly asleep, too lost to notice the care her slave was giving her. Likely not even setting Duran on her would wake her.

Shizuru was about to undress Natsuki the rest of the way but decided it was not worth the effort. If the great and mighty Pharaoh was going to be so irresponsible as to let herself get clay-footed drunk and make her slaves practically carry her to bed, then the great and mighty Pharaoh would just have to deal with bed-wrinkled clothes in the morning.

For a few moments, Shizuru regarded her mistress. The bedroom was silent but for the hum of cicadas drifting in on the warm night air.

She looked so peaceful, lying there. So vulnerable. The cold conqueror overcome and made into just any other young woman.

Was this really the same woman who commanded armies and spoke with gods? The same woman who scowled and smiled and allowed Shizuru's teasing? Those emerald eyes, though hidden from Shizuru now, still held her gaze in her memories, and remembrance of the husky voice saying her name filled Shizuru's ears.

Lamplight danced over the armor and weapons decorating the walls, but Shizuru blocked out everything except the way the soft golden glow rippled across Natsuki's sun-bronzed skin.

Shizuru wanted to play her fingertips across that skin just like the light, like the harpists at the banquet who had so skillfully drawn music from their instruments.

_"And now you belong to her," Tomoe said to me._

She leaned over the sleeping woman until they were close enough that strands of sandy hair brushed Natsuki's cheek as they fell.

_Belong._

Natsuki was blushing beneath her. No, it was merely the wine that had set an inviting flush in her cheeks. But it was irresistible.

Shizuru reached a hand out, needing some kind of contact. Fingertips traced the small mouth, the soft lips, and came to rest upon a pink cheek. She tilted Natsuki's face ever so slightly towards her.

"_Natsuki_..."

Shizuru was not aware she had whispered the name aloud. She was no longer aware of anything but Natsuki. The dark-haired young woman had captured her completely just by lying there, passed out.

At that moment, Shizuru could not have held herself back any more than she could have held back the flow of the Nile. She closed the distance between them.

Shizuru breathed in the scent of her, savored the bittersweet taste of wine on her lips and the deeper taste, sweeter still, of the woman beneath. She pressed further on, caressing with her lips until Natsuki's taste and texture and scent all blended together into one exquisite experience. Warmth seemed to fill Shizuru up like pure, clear water pouring into a cup, starting from where they were joined.

Her eyes fluttered shut in ecstasy.

_Tomoe was wrong. It is _I _who could die wrapped in _your_ coils._

She heard something thud behind her, snatching her senses back to the outside world with painful abruptness. She broke away from Natsuki and whipped her head around, mind whirling.

Arika stood there in the doorway, a bundle of cloths fallen at her feet, jaw slack with shock, big blue eyes open almost as wide as her palms.

Shizuru cursed her own foolishness. Natsuki had so fogged her mind that she had forgotten Arika would be returning before long. Shizuru's head was spinning as if _she_ were the drunk one.

Whatever strange feeling holding her snapped, and reason came flooding back, bringing panic and guilt with it.

_Gods, what have I done? _She was certain not even Natsuki's leniency would forgive such a transgression! What on earth had she been thinking?

"I, uh... I brought... brought the cloth," Arika managed weakly, "For Natsuki-sama's head..." Her eyes darted to their mistress, but the woman still had not stirred.

Shizuru cleared her throat and opened her mouth to speak. She had to stop and clear her throat again before she could get any words out.

"Thank you, Arika-san," she said regally. It amazed her, that she could manage such a self-possessed voice when her heart was still doing backflips in her chest at the memory of capturing Natsuki's mouth with hers. "I'm sure that will help her head in the morning."

Shizuru rose and walked over to Arika – she was amazed again that her legs even worked – picking up the cloths from where they had fallen. She took two over to the wash basin to wet them before returning to the bed and using one of the damp cloths to wipe the kohl from Natsuki's eyelids.

She gently laid the other cloth across Natsuki's brow. And had to resist the urge to smooth the dark hair out of that breathtaking face.

"Uh... I suppose we should go to sleep now too," Arika mumbled. She seemed to have gotten over her initial shock, but she still twirled her braids awkwardly and avoided looking at Shizuru. "Doesn't seem much else for us to do until she wakes."

Shizuru bit her lip. How was she going to explain this to her friend? Before she could even think what to say, Arika spoke again.

The girl shuffled her feet nervously. "...Uh, my little room is next door. It connects to this one in case Natsuki-sama needs to call for a slave during the night. I was going to tell you earlier, there's another cot in there, if you want..."

Shizuru swallowed a tiny shard of sadness. During the journey she had grown accustomed to sleeping in Natsuki's room – or tent, rather. But she did not know if Natsuki wanted to continue that arrangement now that she was home. The thought of no longer being able to fall asleep to the sound of her breathing somehow seemed a great loss to Shizuru.

She offered Arika the best smile she could muster at the moment. "Thank you, Arika-san, I would appreciate that."

It was sweet of Arika to still offer, considering what had happened. And it might give Shizuru the opportunity to come up with some sort of explanation. For Arika and for herself. She had to collect her thoughts by the time Natsuki woke in the morning.

Shizuru took a deep breath to steady herself and reluctantly followed her friend from the bedroom, glancing over her shoulder at the sleeping woman she could still taste on her lips.

* * *

Author's Notes: I admit there is no breed called Arrow Hound, before you dog-lovers send me vitriolic PMs. ;) His description is based on a stele I saw in a museum while researching.

Also, I know Tomoe was terribly unsubtle in this chapter, but come on, I could have made her the sweetest person in the world and you all still would have known she was rotten beneath!


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